Criminal Law - Inchoate Offenses Barbri amp

If the evidence is sufficient, a defendant charged with an attempt to commit a crime can be found guilty of:

Attempt to commit the crime only

A defendant charged only with an attempt to commit a crime can be convicted only of the attempted crime and may not be convicted of the completed crime, regardless of whether the evidence shows that he completed it.

What two requirements are necessary for a conspirator to be liable for crimes committed by a co-conspirator?

The crimes were committed in furtherance of the conspiracy's objectives and were foreseeable

A conspirator is liable for the crimes committed by a co-conspirator only if the crimes were committed in furtherance of the conspiracy's objectives and were foreseeable. There is no requirement that the crimes were part of the original agreement between the conspirators; all that is required is that they be foreseeable. The states of mind required by the crimes is also irrelevant to criminal liability for foreseeable crimes committed in furtherance of the conspiracy.

Under the majority view, which of the following inchoate crimes does not merge into the completed crime?

Conspiracy

In most jurisdictions, a conspirator may be convicted of both the criminal conspiracy and the completed offense. The crimes do not merge.

This is not true for solicitation and attempt crimes. It is generally accepted that one cannot be convicted of solicitation and the substantive offense or of attempt of a crime and the crime itself.

The elements of attempt are:

The specific intent to perform an act and obtain a result, that, if achieved, would constitute a crime; and an overt act in furtherance of the crime.

The elements of attempt are the specific intent to perform an act and obtain a result, that, if achieved, would constitute a crime; and an overt act in furtherance of the crime. In other words, more than just the requisite intent is required.

The intent necessary to be convicted of conspiracy is:

The intent to agree and the intent to achieve the objective of the conspiracy

A defendant must possess both the intent to agree AND the intent to achieve the objective of the conspiracy to be convicted of conspiracy.

Traditionally, which of the following is a defense to solicitation?

The solicitor is exempt from liability for the completed crime

The solicitor would have a defense if she could not be guilty of the intended crime because of a legislative intent to exempt her.

It is not a defense that the solicitation could not have been successful due to actual circumstances surrounding the crime. (This is factual impossibility.) The culpability of the solicitor is measured by the circumstances as she believed them to be.

It is generally not a defense that the solicitation has been withdrawn once it has been made. However, note that the M.P.C. recognizes renunciation as a defense if the defendant prevents the commission of the crime, such as by persuading the person solicited not to commit the crime.

For solicitation, no overt act in furtherance of the solicitation is required. (An overt act is usually required for conspiracy.)

Which of the following defendants would be found not guilty of solicitation due to being exempt from the charged crime?

A minor female charged with solicitation of statutory rape by urging a man to have sexual intercourse with her

A minor female charged with solicitation of statutory rape by urging an adult male to have intercourse with her would be found not guilty of solicitation due to being exempt from the charged crime. The solicitor has a defense to the crime of solicitation if she could not be guilty of the intended crime because of legislative intent to exempt her. A minor is exempt from prosecution for statutory rape, or the solicitation thereof, because the statutory intent under such statutes is to protect minors, and it would make little sense to prosecute a victim under a statute that is designed to protect her.

However, a minor who solicits an adult to have sexual intercourse with another minor could be found guilty of solicitation. The victim in such a case would be the other minor, and the legislative intent to protect minors would not be implicated in this case.

The adult female who solicits a minor male to have sexual intercourse with her could be convicted of solicitation. Statutory rape is a gender-neutral crime.

If conspirators are successful in completing the intended crime, they can be convicted of:

Both the crime of conspiracy and the completed crime

If the conspirators are successful, they can be convicted of both criminal conspiracy and the crime they committed pursuant to the conspiracy; i.e., the crime of conspiracy is not "merged" into the completed crime.

A conspirator can be convicted of a crime committed by another conspirator if:

The crimes were committed in furtherance of the objectives of the conspiracy, and the crimes were foreseeable.

A conspirator can be convicted of a crime committed by another conspirator if the crimes were committed in furtherance of the objectives of the conspiracy AND the crimes were foreseeable.

A defendant charged with murder _______ be convicted of attempted murder; a defendant charged with attempted murder _______ be convicted of murder.

May; May not

A defendant charged with murder may be convicted of attempted murder, whereas a defendant charged with attempted murder may not be convicted of murder. A defendant charged with a completed crime may be found guilty of either the completed crime or an attempt to commit the crime as long as the evidence presented supports such a verdict. The defendant cannot be found guilty of both the completed crime and the attempt because of merger and double jeopardy (an attempt to commit a crime is a lesser included offense of the completed crime).

Which of the following describes sufficient intent to convict a defendant of an attempted crime?

The intent to perform an act and obtain a result that, if achieved, would constitute a crime.

The intent required for an attempted crime is the intent to perform an act and obtain a result that, if achieved, would constitute a crime.

Note that regardless of the intent required for a completed offense, an attempt always requires a specific intent.

The awareness by the defendant that he is acting in a proscribed way and that any attendant circumstances required by the crime are present more closely describes "general intent." Attempt is a specific intent crime.

A reckless disregard of an obvious or high risk that a particular harmful result might occur from the conduct more closely describes "malice." Attempt is a specific intent crime.

For the crime of conspiracy, which statement best describes the necessary intent?

The intent to agree and the intent to achieve the objective of the conspiracy

A defendant must possess both the intent to agree AND the intent to achieve the objective of the conspiracy to be convicted of conspiracy.

A defendant charged with a completed crime can be found guilty of:

Either a completed crime or an attempt to commit the crime

A defendant charged with a completed crime may be found guilty of either the completed crime or an attempt to commit the crime as long as the evidence presented supports such a verdict. The defendant cannot be found guilty of both the completed crime and the attempt because of merger and double jeopardy (an attempt to commit a crime is a lesser included offense of the completed crime).

Under the majority view, which of the following inchoate crimes does not merge into the completed crime?

Conspiracy

In most jurisdictions, a conspirator may be convicted of both the criminal conspiracy and the completed offense. The crimes do not merge.

This is not true for solicitation and attempt crimes. It is generally accepted that one cannot be convicted of solicitation and the substantive offense or of attempt of a crime and the crime itself.

If conspirators are successful in completing the intended crime, they can be convicted of:

Both the crime of conspiracy and the completed crime

If the conspirators are successful, they can be convicted of both criminal conspiracy and the crime they committed pursuant to the conspiracy; i.e., the crime of conspiracy is not "merged" into the completed crime.

Under the majority view, which of the following inchoate crimes does not merge into the completed crime?

Conspiracy

In most jurisdictions, a conspirator may be convicted of both the criminal conspiracy and the completed offense. The crimes do not merge.

This is not true for solicitation and attempt crimes. It is generally accepted that one cannot be convicted of solicitation and the substantive offense or of attempt of a crime and the crime itself.

In most states, a defendant may be convicted of the principal offense and _______.

A conspiracy to commit that offense

The doctrine of merger has been abandoned in many jurisdictions in cases involving a conspiracy, allowing an accused to be convicted of both conspiracy and the principal offense. However, an accused cannot be convicted of either attempt or solicitation and the principal offense.

Under the majority view, which of the following inchoate crimes does not merge into the completed crime?

Conspiracy

In most jurisdictions, a conspirator may be convicted of both the criminal conspiracy and the completed offense. The crimes do not merge.

This is not true for solicitation and attempt crimes. It is generally accepted that one cannot be convicted of solicitation and the substantive offense or of attempt of a crime and the crime itself.