The term accomplice liability is bantered about in many circles, but very few people take the time look up what an accomplice is under Pennsylvania law. Under Pennsylvania law, an accomplice is defined as a person who is liable for not only the crimes that he has committed, but also the crimes of another for whom he is legally accountable. Chester County Violent Crime Lawyers So what kind of acts do you have to do in order to be an accomplice? Under PA law a person is an accomplice of another person committing a crime if:
(1) with the intent of promoting or facilitating the commission of a crime (this can be any crime, such as bank robbery, murder etc), he:
(i) solicits such other person to commit the crime; or
(ii) aids or agrees or attempts to aid another person is planning or committing the crime.
What crimes can I be an accomplice too? Under Pennsylvania law, a person can be an accomplice to any crime where aids or agrees to attempt to aid another person commit a crime. Accordingly, a person can be an accomplice for assisting someone commit a drug transaction by being a lookout, or by being a getaway driver for a bank robbery read about various accomplice crimes here or by aiding a murder by getting a gun for someone who he knows wants to use the gun to commit a murder.
What are the penalties for being an accomplice? The penalties for being an accomplice to a crime are no different than if you committed the entire crime by yourself. For example, assuming that no firearm is used in the commission of a robbery, the accomplice who is the driver in a robbery is just as culpable as his accomplice who gets out of the car and goes into a bank to take money. Accordingly, if you are being investigated or have been charged for being an accomplice in the commission of any crime, you should contact an experienced Chester County Criminal lawyer immediately.
