conspiracies

Federal sentencing guidelines for possession of firearm with prior felony convictions

December 16, 2010
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In prosecutions for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the United States Attorney may seek a sentence based on the defendant’s Armed Career Criminal status. When this occurs, sentencing is severe. The offense of possession of a firearm by a felon is established by Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1). The statute [...]

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Possession of a firearm by convicted felon: federal offense

December 15, 2010
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A charge in federal court for possessing  a firearm as a convicted felon carries extremely severe penalties. It does not matter that the firearm was unloaded. Nor does it matter that the weapon was never discharged. In fact, the firearm itself may not be operable. Nonetheless, a person can be found guilty of this crime [...]

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Accountability for acts of another during conspiracy

December 8, 2010
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In a federal prosecution for conspiracy, the defendant is typically charged with two offenses. First, he is charged with conspiracy. Second, he is charged with the offense that he and his co-conspirators were conspiring to commit. This is known as the object of the conspiracy. For instance, a person charged in connection with a drug [...]

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The statute of limitations defense for federal crimes

December 5, 2010
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A criminal charge is like a civil lawsuit in one respect, the time limit for filing against the defendant. The federal statute of limitations that applies to criminal charges says that once 5 years has passed from the commission of the offense, the federal government is barred from filing charges. The federal statute of limitations [...]

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Conspiracy to defraud the United States: elements and sentencing

December 4, 2010
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The federal conspiracy statute is Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. Conspiracy is the agreement to commit a criminal offense. A conspiracy charge has penalties in addition to those for the offense that was agreed upon. The federal statute establishes two types of conspiracies: Conspiracies based on an agreement to commit a federal offense; [...]

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Proof of an agreement is necessary for conspiracy charges

November 1, 2010
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Most conspiracy cases are charged under the general conspiracy statute from Title 18, Section 371 of the United States Code. In a conspiracy case, the prosecution must prove all of the following elements beyond a reasonable doubt in order for the jury to find the defendant guilty: An agreement. An unlawful object (ie, a criminal [...]

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A summary of federal conspiracy crimes

October 30, 2010
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Conspiracy is an offense that is charged in combination with another. When a person commits a criminal offense together with another person or group, the agreement among them to commit the crime is a conspiracy and its own offense. For example, distribution or possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance under Title 21, United [...]

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