Principals, Accomplices, Aiders, Abettors

Question 1

Introduction

Answer 1

At common law, children under the age of 7 are never capable of comitting a crime; children ages between 7-14 were rebuttable presumed to be incapable of committing crimes; and children at least 14 and older can be charged as adults

Question 2

Principals

Answer 2

Definition - D whose acts or omissions form the actus reus of the crime

Note - can be more than one principal

Ask - who committed the actus reus that give rise to the offense

Question 3

Accomplices

Answer 3

Principle - theory for holding people who are not the principal responsible for the crime actually committed by the principal

Definition - people who assist the principal either before or during the commission of a crime can be charged as accomplices but must act with intent to assit in the crime

Bystanders - bystanders who approve are not accomplices

Liability - liabile for both the planned crime and any other crimes that occur in the course of the criminal act, as long as they are foreseeable (look for same criminal scheme)

Liablity 2 - can be held liable even if they can’t be principals or even if the principal can’t be convicted

Exception - person protected by a statute cannot be convicted as an accomplice in violating the statute (e.g., underage statutory rape is not an accomplice, assisting a suicide)

Question 4

Ohio - Parties to a Crime

Answer 4

Instead of accomplice liability, Ohio uses complicity

Complicity occures when:

1. a person acts with the culpability required to commit an offense and
2. one of the following:
   
   1. solicits another
   2. aides or abets another
   3. conspires with another
   4. causes an innocent person to commit the offense

Complicitor (accomplice) may be prosecutred and punished as though she was the principal actor in the crime

Defense - affirmative defense if prior to the crim, the person terminates her complicity under circumstances manifesting a complete and voluntary renunciation of her criminal purpose

Note - NOT THE SAME AS CONSPIRACY - conspiracy requires an substantial overt act; complicty requires completed crime; conspiracy can be an element of complicity

Obstruction of Justice - persoon purposely hinders the discovery, apprehension, prosecution, or conviction of an offender.

Note - mere lack of cooperation with police is not obstructing; have to affirmatively hinder the investigation

Question 5

Accesories After the Fact

Answer 5

Definition - assist the D only after the crime has been committed; guilty of separate offense (e.g, harboring a fugitive or obstruction of justice)

Question 6

Aiders / Abettors and Conspiracy

Answer 6

In addition to accomplice liability for the substantive crime, individuals who aid or abet a D to commit a crime may also be guilt of the separate crime of conspiracy if there was an agreement to commit the crime and an overt act was taken in furtherance of that agreement