When you are an accessory to murder, it means that you help or assist the perpetrator (killer) before or after committing murder. You do not need to have been present during the commission of the crime to serve as an accessory. Most people who serve as an accessory to murder are never present during the commission of the offense. In most jurisdictions, being an accessory to murder is a felony crime, not a misdemeanor. The conviction of this crime could lead to years in jail or state prison.
You can be either an accessory after the fact or an accessory before the fact. An accessory after the fact means that you help after the commission of a felony. It implies that you harbor, conceal, or aid the perpetrator after committing murder.
An accessory before the fact means that you aid or help another person before they commit a felony (murder). In most states, including California, the law defines murder as a crime whereby someone kills another with malice. Acting with malice aforethought means that the perpetrators committed the wrongful act either:
- On purpose or intentionally
- The perpetrator acted with a conscious or intentional disregard of human life
Contributing Or Aiding In The Commission Of A Crime
You can act as an accessory after the fact if you help the perpetrator after they commit the crime. For example, if you support the murderer drive the getaway vehicle, you will be acting as an accessory after the fact. If you help the perpetrator before committing the crime, you will be acting as an accessory before the fact. For example, you could do this if you help the perpetrator select the knife they will use when committing domestic violence.
You could only be an accessory to murder if the prosecutor proves that you were aware that you knew about the crime. When you acted, you must have known that the person you were helping was either going to commit a felony or had already committed a felony. If you act as an abettor or abet in committing a crime, the person you are helping is known as the principal offender. If you are an accessory before the fact, you could face the exact charges as the main offender or perpetrator.
You will not face charges for the underlying crime (murder) if you are an accessory after the fact. Being an accessory to murder is a felony offense. A conviction of being an accessory after the fact could lead to an imprisonment of up to fifteen years imprisonment in state prison. If you serve as an accessory before the fact, you are likely to face harsher penalties than when you act as an accessory after the fact.
Accessory Before The Fact Is The Same As Aiding or Abetting
The crime of accessory before the fact is known as aiding and abetting. The California PC 31 outlines the crime of aiding and abetting. This statute makes it an offense to encourage, facilitate, or aid in the commission of a crime. If you help or abet in committing a crime, you will face the same penalties as the person who commits the actual crime. The prosecutor must prove the following elements to charge you as an abettor or aider:
- You knew about the perpetrator's illegal plan.
- You encouraged or facilitated the perpetrator's plan intentionally or on purpose.
- You aided, instigated, or promoted the crime.
Even if it seems as if the abettor must have encouraged or promoted the criminal activity before its commission, this is not always the case. You could commit aiding and abet simultaneously as the commission of the murder. The judge could find you guilty under the accomplice liability theory if it is evident that you became aware during the commission of the crime and you encouraged, promoted, or facilitated the occurrence of the crime.
If you face charges under PC 31 for aiding and abetting, the judge will determine whether you acted intentionally or knowingly. In the crime of aiding and abetting, your conduct does not need to have been a substantial factor in the crime. As long as you were concerned with crime, no matter how slight your concern was, you could face aiding and abetting charges. Some of the examples of being an accessory before the fact include:
- Keeping the engine of the vehicle running to help the perpetrator escape after committing the crime
- Serving as a lookout to ensure that the perpetrator is not caught
- Driving the getaway vehicle
Even if it is evident that you are legally incapable of committing the crime of murder or another felony, you could still face aiding and abetting charges under PC 31. Aiding and abetting (accessory before the fact) could sound like California's crime of conspiracy. The two crimes are closely related. However, the two crimes are distinct offenses. For you to be a conspiracy to murder, there must be an agreement for you to participate in the crime. However, aiding and abetting in the commission of murder does not require an agreement.
The Prosecutor Does Not Charge You As Accomplice
In a case of accessory before the fact, the prosecutor will not charge you as an accomplice or with aiding and abetting. However, under California law, the prosecutor will charge you with the underlying criminal offense. The prosecutor will then present your case on the theory that you acted as an aider or abettor. Some of the factors that will be considered in determining whether you acted as an aider or abettor include:
- Whether you were present at the crime scene
- Companionship
- Your behavior before and after the commission of the murder
The factors outlined above are just some of the factors considered when determining whether to charge you as an accomplice. However, these factors are not conclusive. The prosecutor and the court could consider other additional factors.
Presence At The Crime Scene Is Not Necessary For You To Be An Accessory
To be an accessory before the fact, you do not need to have been present at the crime scene. You also do not need to have logistically or physically assisted in the commission of the murder. If you instigated, encouraged, or promoted the commission of the crime, this is enough to make you face criminal charges. Under PC 31, the prosecutor only needs to prove that you directly or indirectly helped the perpetrator or encouraged them by using words or gestures. You could face charges irrespective of how little your contribution was.
Knowledge Alone Is Not Enough to Make You An Accessory
If you knew that a murder was being committed or was about to be committed, but you failed to report it, this does not make you an accessory before the fact. This knowledge is not enough to make you face aiding and abetting charges. However, you could face charges as an aider or an abettor if you had a legal duty to take the necessary steps to prevent the crime, but you failed to do so.
The legal duty to stop a crime is only imposed on particular persons under certain conditions. Certain professionals like doctors and teachers have a legal responsibility to report criminal activity or abuse. Under California law, parents have a legal obligation to exercise reasonable care, protection, supervision, and control over their minor children. If you have a legal duty to prevent a crime from happening, but you fail to do it, you could face accomplice liability as outlined by PC 31.
Penalties For Aiding And Abetting
Facing charges for aiding and abetting (accessory before the fact) under California law could lead to similar charges as the principal to the crime. This means that you will face the same punishment or penalties as the person who committed the crime. However, in a murder case, there is an exception. As the Supreme Court of California maintained, an aider or abettor to murder could at times face higher homicide-related charges than the crime perpetrator. Certain defenses could apply to the actual perpetrator, but these could not apply to the aider or abettor.
If you are an aider or abettor in crime, you will not just be responsible for the perpetrator's criminal activities. You will also be liable for other natural and probable crimes of the primary offense. Natural and probable consequences refer to the foreseeable occurrences resulting from a crime. Whether a specific crime is a natural and probable consequence of the original crime is something that the jury has to decide.
How California Law Defines Murder
According to California law, murder refers to killing another person with malice or malice aforethought. There are two degrees of murder:
- First-degree murder
- Second-degree murder
First-degree murder occurs when the defendant kills another person with premeditation, deliberation, or while lying in wait. Second-degree murder occurs when the defendant kills another person through an intentional act, but unlike a first-degree murder, the defendant does not think or contemplate the murder beforehand. Murder is a felony crime whose punishment includes imprisonment in a California state prison.
To be an accessory to murder is a crime under California law. The state charges accessory before the fact under PC 31 — aiding and abetting. The law charges accessory after the fact under PC 32. The statute makes it an offense to be an accessory after the fact. Therefore, you could face charges under PC 32 if you harbor, conceal, or aid someone, despite knowing that the person has committed murder or a felony.
Violating PC 32 is a wobbler offense, meaning that the prosecutor could charge it as a felony or misdemeanor. If the prosecutor charges you with misdemeanor accessory after the fact, the potential consequences are:
- Imprisonment of up to one year in a county jail
- A fine that does not exceed $5,000
If the prosecutor charges you with a felony accessory after the fact, you could face the following penalties:
- Imprisonment of up to three years in a county jail
- A fine that does not exceed $5,000
The Common Legal Defenses
Upon being charged with an accessory to murder, you have a right to raise a legal defense. With the help of an experienced attorney, you can present an effective defense that casts reasonable doubt on the charges against you. You can assert the following:
- You did not know that the principal offender had committed murder or was intending to commit murder
- The principal offender did not commit murder
- You acted under duress
Acting under duress means that you did not act out of a free will, but another person made you commit the crime. For example, you could assert that you acted as an accessory to murder because another person threatened to harm you if you did not commit the crime.
The following additional legal defenses can also apply in fighting accessory to murder charges:
You Did Not Encourage, Facilitate, or Aid The Crime Commission
You are not guilty of accessory after the fact if you did not aid, facilitate, or encourage the commission of murder or felony in any way. For example, you could be a passenger in a vehicle with the driver and other passengers who decide to rob a store. You remain in the car as another person enters the store, shoots the attendant, and steals cash. In this case, you can state that you were not aware of the other occupant's plan to rob the store when you entered the car. In addition, you did not do anything to facilitate the robbery and the killing of the store attendant. You were merely present in the vehicle, and you should not be held liable for the crime.
The allegation that you were an accessory in murder can be misunderstood in numerous ways. However, if you did not actively contribute to the commission of the crime, you should not face aiding and abetting charges under PC 31.
You Were Falsely Accused
No evidence is required to show that you aided or abetted another person to commit murder or felony. Therefore, it is easy for another person to falsely accuse you of aiding and abetting a crime. Someone could accuse you falsely if they try to divert their criminal culpability by making it appear like you are the crime's mastermind. Other reasons someone could accuse you falsely include revenge, anger, and jealousy. An attorney understands the most effective ways that they can use to investigate your case and scrutinize witnesses to help them fight any false accusations against you.
You Withdrew From Participation In The Murder
Before acting as an accessory to murder, you could have withdrawn from participation by doing any of the following:
- Informing the other persons involved in the crime about your intention to withdraw from the crime
- Doing everything in your power to ensure that the principal offender does not commit the crime
You could use the fact that you withdrew from committing the crime to fight your charges.
For example, you and another person could plan to kill a victim. You decide that you no longer want to commit the murder on the actual day. You tell your crime partner that you are backing out, and you also persuade them to do the same. However, crime partners decide to go through with the murder independently. In the meantime, you call the police and inform them that a person will be killed in a specific location. Unfortunately, by the time the police arrive, your crime partner has already killed the victim. In this case, you can fight being an accessory charge by stating that you withdrew from committing the crime.
However, in some cases, this defense could not apply. In the example above, you could inform your crime partner about your intention to back out from committing the murder. However, instead of calling the police, you leave and go home. In this case, you cannot claim that you did everything in your power to prevent the crime from occurring. Therefore, you could not prevail if you use the withdrawal defense.
You Did Not Have A Legal Duty To Act
Even if you knew that a crime was about to happen and you did nothing to prevent it, you would not face aiding and abetting charges unless you had a legal duty to report the crime. The legal obligation to report a crime is conferred upon a person by the law. Therefore, the mere knowledge that a crime was about to occur would not subject you to criminal charges.
You Only Facilitated The Crime After Its Commission
You can be either an accessory before the fact or an accessory after the fact. Being an accessory before the fact is a more severe offense with harsher charges than being an accessory after the factor. If the prosecutor attempts to charge you with aiding and abetting, you can state that you only facilitated the crime after its commission. This way, you will face charges under PC 32 instead of PC 31.
Find A Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Near Me
Being an accessory in murder is a serious crime, charged as a felony or wobbler under California law. If you are an accessory before the fact, the offense is a felony. Therefore, you could face the exact charges as the defendant. If you are an accessory after the fact, the crime is a wobbler under PC 32. In either case, you need an aggressive attorney to help you fight the charges. For reliable legal representation, contact the Los Angeles Criminal Attorney. Call us at 424-333-0943 and speak to one of our attorneys.
