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You don’t have to complete the conspiracy to be charged 

On Behalf of | Jul 25, 2024 | Criminal Defense |

With many criminal charges, you actually have to commit the crime to be arrested. You’re not going to get arrested for thinking about drunk driving, for example. You actually have to be in control of the vehicle when the police demonstrate that you are over the legal limit or otherwise impaired.

But there are some high-level criminal charges that work a bit differently, and it’s important for people to understand these differences. One example is conspiracy charges. You may never complete the conspiracy at all, but you could still face criminal allegations.

Taking one step

The first thing to know about a conspiracy is that it requires multiple people. This may just be you and one other person, or there could be an entire group. You have all agreed to work together to carry out an illegal act, such as transporting illegal drugs across state lines.

After that, all your group has to do is take one step toward completing that crime and you could face conspiracy charges. It doesn’t matter if you actually carry out the intended activity or not. 

For example, say that you rent a U-Haul truck that you plan to use to smuggle the drugs. If the police can prove that that was your intent and you were clearly acting to further the conspiracy, then you can be arrested. You may never actually have obtained the drugs, put them in the truck or driven across any state lines. But that doesn’t mean you can claim you did nothing wrong. The conspiracy to commit the act is itself an illegal act.

Charges like this can get very complex and may have severe ramifications, such as hefty fines or years behind bars. You must know what defense options you have.