Inchoate Offenses Explained

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As a general rule for trials in the US, the prosecuting attorney must show that the accused is guilty in both mind and body. In Latin, this is known as "mens rea" and "actus rea." In other words, the accused cannot be convicted if they did not actually commit a crime, or if they did not mean to.

One interesting exception to the rule is the class of offense known as "inchoate crimes." To be convicted of an inchoate crime, you do not have to actually commit any legal acts. The prosecution only needs to convincingly demonstrate a specific kind of mens rea. This means you can be charged with planning or intending to commit a crime, even if reasons beyond your control stopped you from actually doing it.

Mens rea is divided into three different categories, in order of severity: criminal negligence, recklessness and intent. A person commits criminal negligence when he or she fails to prevent an accident or injury from happening even though the incident could reasonably be foreseen. (Of course, this only applies to people or property the accused is legally responsible for.) Recklessness is when a person chooses to commit a certain act even though they are fully aware of the potential consequences, leading to someone else's injury. Neither criminal negligence nor reckless is sufficient in an inchoate crime trial.

To win a conviction of an inchoate crime, the prosecution must prove intent, which means the accused was planning or desired to commit a criminal act. Not only does the prosecution not have to prove that the accused committed a crime; the prosecution is not allowed to do so. A person cannot be charged with an inchoate crime and a crime against people or property for the same offense. That is to say, you cannot be charged with committing a crime and with intending to commit one, except in the case of conspiracy. A person can be charged with both a certain crime and conspiring with others to commit it.

This kind of charge was designed so that people who fully intended to commit a crime, but were only stopped by other circumstances, can still be tried. It is not intended to be any sort of thought monitoring or control. For this reason, one defense against this kind of charge is abandonment. In this strategy, the defendant admits to considering or planning a certain plan, but insists that they changed their minds and had no intention of committing a crime at the time they were arrested.

For more information about inchoate crimes, contact Appleton criminal defense attorneys Kohler, Hart & Priebe.

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