California Penal Code 182 PC: Conspiracy

Under California Penal Code 182 PC: Conspiracy, a criminal conspiracy takes place when

  1. Two or more people agree to commit a crime, and
  2. One of them commits an overt act in furtherance of that agreement. Note that any member of the conspiracy may commit the overt act, which doesn’t need to be criminal in and of itself. But does need to be performedbeforethe commission of the agreed upon offense.
Examples:
  • Setting fire to someone’s car and buying the matches to light the fire,
  • Burglarizing a home and calling ahead to see if the occupant has left, or
  • Kidnapping a local judge before he/she sentences your friend and illegally obtaining his home address in order to capture him.
Legal Consequences:

The type of conspiracy you are convicted of will determine your punishment.  Some types of conspiracies are straight felonies while others are wobblers (“wobblers” are crimes which may be prosecuted as misdemeanors or felonies).

Many times, the penalties you face for your participation in a conspiracy will be based on the penalties that may be imposed in connection with the underlying offense.

California 182 PC sets forth different penalties for different types of conspiracies:

Conspiracy to commit fraud:  When the agreement is to do an act described in paragraph (4) the punishment shall imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine.

Conspiracy to commit more than one felony: If the agreement is a conspiracy to commit two or more felonies which have different punishments and the commission of those felonies constitute but one offense of conspiracy, the penalty shall be that prescribed for the felony which has the greater maximum term.

All other acts of conspiracy: When the agreement is to commit any other acts described in this section the punishment shall be imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine.

Conspiracy to commit identity theft: When

  • the agreement is to commit identity theft, as defined in Section 530.5, the court may impose a fine of up to twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000).

How can we defend you against charges of CA 182 PC?

Some of the many legal defenses to this charge are, but are not limited to:

  • No agreement,
  • No overt act,
  • Withdrawal from the conspiracy,
  • Operating under a mistake of law, or
  • Being falsely accused.
  • It is also common to be convicted of conspiracy without being convicted of the underlying crime (or vice versa).  Conspiracy and the underlying crime are two separate offenses, both of which require independent proof.

Contact Us:

We have been successfully defending clients facing all types of criminal charges in Sonoma and Marin Counties, since 1992.

The 100 Trial Lawyers Association has recognized us as one of the best criminal defense attorneys in the country!

Please call our office today at (707) 571-8600 in our centrally located Santa Rosa office in Sonoma County or call our office in San Rafael in Marin County at (415) 492-4507 to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation.

Don’t bargain with your freedom! The right attorney makes all the difference between your freedom and incarceration!