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So your probably facing federal conspiracy charges under 18 USC 371 and your ABSOLUTELY CONFUSED because you didn’t actually commit the crime they’re charging. Maybe you had discussions with people about illegal activity but never followed through. Maybe there’s allegations you agreed to participate in fraud scheme. Or maybe prosecutors claim your mere presence and knowledge makes you part of conspiracy. Look, we get it. Your COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED by these charges. And you should be! Because conspiracy under 18 USC 371 carries 5 YEARS in federal prison just for AGREEING to commit crime and conspiracy is called “prosecutor’s darling” because it’s incredibly easy to prove and makes you responsible for EVERYTHING your coconspirators did even if you didn’t participate!
Let me explain the charge that ensnares more defendants than almost any other federal crime. Section 371 criminalizes conspiracy to commit any federal offense OR conspiracy to defraud United States! Two separate types of conspiracy in one statute!
The statute requires simple elements that prosecutors love: agreement between two or more people plus one overt act in furtherance! Agreement can be informal, tacit, even implied from conduct – doesn’t need written contract or explicit discussion! Just mutual understanding to violate law!
Here’s what’s really scary – the crime is complete as soon as agreement made AND any conspirator takes even minor overt act! Don’t need to succeed in committing underlying crime! Don’t even need to attempt it! Agreement plus one small act by anyone is enough!
Overt act can be COMPLETELY LEGAL act! Buying supplies, making phone call, opening bank account, sending email! Doesn’t need to be criminal act itself – just needs to be step toward completing conspiracy! Buying groceries could be overt act if conspiracy involves using groceries for illegal purpose!
Two separate conspiracy types charged under same statute!
Conspiracy to commit offense means agreement to violate specific federal criminal statute! Agreeing to commit wire fraud, drug trafficking, robbery, murder – any federal crime! This is “Klein conspiracy” after Supreme Court case interpreting it!
Klein conspiracy elements: (1) agreement to violate federal law (2) knowledge of illegal objective (3) voluntary participation (4) overt act! Must prove you agreed to specific criminal objective! Generic agreement to “do something illegal” isn’t enough – must be agreement to commit particular federal crime!
Conspiracy to defraud United States means agreement to interfere with or obstruct legitimate government functions by deceit or dishonest means! Don’t need to agree to violate specific criminal statute – just need agreement to impede government function through deceptive means! This is “Haas conspiracy”!
Defraud conspiracy is BROADER than Klein conspiracy! Covers conduct that might not violate specific statute but interferes with IRS tax collection, customs enforcement, SEC investigations, any federal agency function! Prosecutors use when conduct doesn’t fit neat criminal statute!
Both carry same 5-year maximum penalty! Prosecutors often charge BOTH types for same conduct! Agreeing to commit tax evasion violates specific statute (Klein conspiracy) AND defrauds IRS’s tax collection function (Haas conspiracy)! Two conspiracy counts for same agreement!
Elements seem simple but each has complex requirements!
Must prove AGREEMENT between two or more people! Agreement can be proven circumstantially! Court looks for mutual understanding – doesn’t need formal contract or written terms! Can infer agreement from coordinated actions, parallel conduct, common goal!
Agreement need NOT be explicit! “Tacit or mutual understanding” satisfies element! If you and coconspirator act in coordinated way toward common illegal goal, jury can infer agreement existed! Pattern of behavior suggesting coordination proves agreement!
Must prove you KNEW about conspiracy and VOLUNTARILY joined it! Mere presence at meetings or association with conspirators isn’t enough – must show you knowingly participated! But knowledge can be inferred from your actions and statements!
Must prove at least ONE overt act by ANY conspirator! Once any member of conspiracy does something in furtherance, ALL members guilty of conspiracy! You personally don’t need to commit overt act – coconspirator’s act makes you guilty!
Overt act requirement is INCREDIBLY easy to satisfy! Can be innocent-seeming act like making phone call, meeting at restaurant, withdrawing cash from bank! Doesn’t need to be substantial step or crime itself!
Terrifying doctrine that makes you responsible for crimes you didn’t commit!
Supreme Court in Pinkerton v. United States held conspirators criminally liable for FORESEEABLE substantive crimes committed by coconspirators in furtherance of conspiracy! Even if you didn’t participate in crime, didn’t intend it, and didn’t know it would happen – you’re liable if it was foreseeable and in furtherance of conspiracy!
This means conspiracy charge brings package deal of LIABILITY for everything coconspirators do! Join drug conspiracy? You’re responsible for every sale, every transport, every distribution by ANY member during conspiracy! Could face decades of additional sentences for crimes coconspirators committed!
“Foreseeable” is broadly interpreted! If reasonably foreseeable that coconspirator might commit particular crime as natural consequence of conspiracy, you’re liable! Conspiracy to sell drugs makes gun possession foreseeable – so you’re liable for coconspirator’s gun crime!
“In furtherance” means done to advance conspiracy’s goals! Crimes committed to protect conspiracy, generate revenue, eliminate competition – all in furtherance! Broad concept that encompasses most crimes during conspiracy!
Pinkerton liability MULTIPLIES your sentence exposure! Small-time participant in fraud conspiracy? You face sentences for millions in losses from what ringleaders did! This is why conspiracy is so dangerous – makes you accountable for entire conspiracy’s conduct!
Hearsay exception that destroys your defense!
Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2)(E) says coconspirator statements made DURING and IN FURTHERANCE of conspiracy aren’t hearsay! Prosecutors can introduce statements your coconspirators made to third parties as evidence against YOU even though it’s hearsay!
This means jury hears what your coconspirators said even if they don’t testify! Coconspirator told informant about drug shipment? Admissible against you! Coconspirator bragged about fraud scheme to girlfriend? Admissible against you! You can’t cross-examine person who made statement but jury considers it as evidence of your guilt!
Requirements are: (1) statement made during conspiracy (2) in furtherance of conspiracy (3) independent evidence shows conspiracy existed! Court must find by preponderance that these requirements met before admitting statement!
“In furtherance” is interpreted loosely! Statements updating coconspirators, coordinating activities, recruiting new members, concealing conspiracy – all in furtherance! Even idle boasts and narratives may qualify if they maintain conspirators’ relationships!
2024 Eleventh Circuit ruling EXPANDED this exception! Court held conspiracy for hearsay purposes need NOT be illegal! Any “joint venture” or working toward shared goal qualifies! Makes exception even broader!
We challenge by showing statement wasn’t in furtherance or was made after conspiracy ended! But courts admit most coconspirator statements against defendants!
Sentences can be CRUSHING despite 5-year statutory maximum!
Standard Section 371 conspiracy: 5 years maximum imprisonment and fines up to $250,000! This applies to BOTH Klein conspiracies (commit offense) and Haas conspiracies (defraud US)!
But many specific conspiracy statutes carry higher penalties! Drug conspiracy under 21 USC 846 carries same penalties as substantive drug offense – up to life for certain quantities! Conspiracy to commit murder? Life imprisonment!
Pinkerton liability ADDS sentences for substantive crimes! Conspiracy conviction plus liability for coconspirators’ crimes creates massive sentencing exposure! Conspiracy to distribute drugs might be 5 years but Pinkerton liability for coconspirators’ distributions could add decades!
Sentencing guidelines based on total conspiracy conduct! Even if you played minor role, guidelines calculate based on ENTIRE conspiracy’s illegal proceeds or drug quantities! Joined conspiracy last month? Sentenced based on what ringleaders did for years before you joined!
Relevant conduct includes ALL foreseeable acts by coconspirators! Your sentence enhanced by drug amounts your coconspirators sold, money coconspirators laundered, fraudulent claims coconspirators submitted!
Multiple conspiracy counts? Sentences can run consecutively! Conspiracy to commit wire fraud PLUS conspiracy to launder money PLUS conspiracy to defraud IRS? That’s three separate 5-year counts potentially running back-to-back!
Prosecutions cover EVERY type of federal crime!
Drug conspiracies! Most common federal conspiracy charge! Agreeing to distribute drugs, import narcotics, manufacture methamphetamine! Even low-level participants like couriers and street dealers charged with conspiracy!
Fraud conspiracies! Wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, healthcare fraud, securities fraud conspiracies! Business partners agreeing to submit false invoices, investment advisors scheming to defraud clients! White-collar cases almost always include conspiracy counts!
Corruption conspiracies! Public officials agreeing to accept bribes, rig contracts, embezzle public funds! Politicians, bureaucrats, contractors coordinating to defraud government programs!
Tax conspiracies! Agreeing to evade taxes, file false returns, conceal income! Classic “conspiracy to defraud” charge when multiple people work together to cheat IRS!
Immigration conspiracies! Agreeing to smuggle aliens, harbor undocumented workers, provide false documents! Organizations facilitating illegal immigration charged with conspiracy!
Defenses are LIMITED but must be pursued aggressively!
No agreement defense! If you didn’t agree to illegal objective, no conspiracy! Mere association with conspirators or presence at meetings doesn’t prove agreement! We show you lacked knowledge of illegal purpose or didn’t agree to participate!
Withdrawal defense! If you withdrew from conspiracy before overt act by communicating withdrawal to coconspirators or taking affirmative action to defeat conspiracy, not liable for subsequent acts! Must be unequivocal communication or thwarting action! Withdrawal after overt act doesn’t erase conspiracy guilt but prevents Pinkerton liability for future crimes!
Lack of knowledge defense! If you didn’t know about conspiracy’s illegal objectives, can’t be guilty! Thought you were part of legitimate business? Didn’t know shipments contained drugs? Believed invoices were accurate? Lack of knowledge negates intent element!
No overt act defense! If government can’t prove any conspirator committed overt act in furtherance, conspiracy incomplete! We challenge whether alleged acts were actually in furtherance of conspiracy! Though this is rare since overt act requirement is so easy to satisfy!
Impossibility is NOT valid defense! Even if completing conspiracy objective was impossible, conspiracy charge still stands! Agreed to defraud bank that was already closed? Still conspiracy! Agreed to sell drugs to undercover agent? Still conspiracy!
Entrapment defense! If government agents induced conspiracy you wouldn’t otherwise join, entrapment may apply! But must show government created conspiracy not just provided opportunity!
Prosecutors LOVE conspiracy charges for strategic advantages!
Extremely easy to prove compared to substantive crimes! Don’t need to prove actual crime occurred – just agreement plus one minor act! Don’t need to prove you personally did anything criminal – coconspirator’s act satisfies overt act!
Allows prosecution of preparatory conduct that wouldn’t otherwise be criminal! Planning crimes, discussing illegal activity, coordinating with others – all become prosecutable! Conduct that’s legal when done alone becomes criminal when done in agreement with others!
Creates liability for ALL coconspirators’ crimes through Pinkerton! Prosecutors charge conspiracy then pile on substantive offenses using Pinkerton liability! Multiplies sentence exposure massively!
Coconspirator hearsay exception allows damaging evidence! Prosecutors introduce statements that would otherwise be inadmissible hearsay! Your coconspirators’ statements used against you without them testifying!
Venue rules favor prosecution! Conspiracy prosecution can occur in ANY district where any conspirator committed any overt act! Gives prosecutors forum shopping to choose favorable jurisdictions!
Look, we’re not your typical lawyers who don’t understand conspiracy’s unique dangers. We’re former federal prosecutors who CHARGED conspiracy cases and know EXACTLY how to challenge agreement element and prevent Pinkerton liability!
We understand how to prove lack of agreement and knowledge! We know when withdrawal defense applies! We can challenge coconspirator statements! Most importantly, we negotiate downward role adjustments to minimize sentencing based on others’ conduct!
Other lawyers don’t understand Pinkerton liability’s devastation! They miss withdrawal opportunities! Their ignorance leads to sentences for crimes you didn’t commit!
Call us RIGHT NOW at 212-300-5196
Conspiracy investigations mean wiretaps and cooperating witnesses!
Former federal prosecutors – Conspiracy defense specialists – Available 24/7!
Don’t speak to FBI about alleged coconspirators without experienced conspiracy counsel! They’re building agreement evidence from your statements! Every comment about discussions or coordination becomes proof of conspiracy! Assert your rights and call us IMMEDIATELY!
Remember – federal conspiracy charges aren’t just about what you did, there about what ANYONE in conspiracy did that’s attributed to you. One agreement, one phone call counted as overt act, one foreseeable crime by coconspirator can mean decades in federal prison. You need someone who understands both withdrawal defense AND Pinkerton liability. Call us NOW before “prosecutor’s darling” charge destroys your life!
Very diligent, organized associates; got my case dismissed. Hard working attorneys who can put up with your anxiousness. I was accused of robbing a gemstone dealer. Definitely A law group that lays out all possible options and best alternative routes. Recommended for sure.
- ROBIN, GUN CHARGES ROBIN
NJ CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEYS