Also known as: abets · abetted · abetting · abettor · abettors · abettator · abettators · aid and abet
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Conduct by which a person aids, encourages, or assists another in committing a crime. The assistance may consist of instructions, encouragement, or material support supplied before the offense occurs. Presence at the scene is not required for liability to attach.
Anika Anand explained to her friend how to submit false accident claims using client files and offered sample narratives. Anika retired and moved away before the friend later filed the claims. Anika's advance instructions and encouragement establish her liability as an accessory before the fact even though she was absent when the fraud occurred.
Aisha Ahmed advised a clinic operator on methods to distribute contraceptive information in violation of state law. Aisha remained offsite during the distribution. Her counseling and encouragement before the acts made her an abettor under the accessory statute.
Alice Atkins assisted a minor in arranging prohibited sexual conduct by providing transportation and cover stories. Alice knew the conduct violated the statute yet supplied the means. Her purposeful assistance rendered her liable for aiding and abetting the offense.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Andre Antoine received and passed along misappropriated information knowing it would be used to trade securities. Andre's knowing assistance enabled the scheme. His conduct constituted aiding and abetting the primary violation.
Alexis Archer helped an unmarried couple structure living arrangements that risked violating an adultery prohibition. Alexis provided logistical support and advice after learning of the planned conduct. Her assistance made her an abettor of the contemplated offense.
Albert Allen supplied information and coordinated actions that enabled a controlling shareholder to acquire a company through misleading disclosures. Albert knew the materials were false yet continued to assist. His conduct amounted to aiding and abetting the securities violation.
An accessory before the fact aids, abets, or encourages the crime but is not present when it occurs. A principal in the second degree must both aid and be physically present at the scene. The distinction turns on presence rather than the nature of the assistance itself.
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No. Liability attaches when the encouragement or assistance is provided. Subsequent retirement or absence from the scene does not erase the completed act of abetting.
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Under the modern unilateral approach to attempt, purposeful aiding conduct can support attempt liability even if the intended principal never acts. The focus is on the abettor's own substantial step taken with criminal purpose.
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…Here those doubts are removed by reason of a criminal conviction for serving married couples in violation of an aiding-and-abetting statute. Certainly the accessory should have standing to assert that the offense which he is charged with assisting is not, or cannot constitutionally be, a crime. This case is more akin…