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If you or a loved on has been charged with conspiracy to commit a crime in Massachusetts, you need to speak with an experienced criminal defense attorney right away. Call the Law Offices of Robert J. White today for a free, no obligation, consultation. Below you will find some information on conspiracy laws in Massachusetts.
CONSPIRACY – G.L. c. 274, ยง 7
A conspiracy is an agreement of two or more people to do something that is unlawful (or, if raised by the evidence, to do something by unlawful means). The crime is the agreement to do something unlawful (or to use unlawful means). It does not matter whether the plan was successful or not, or whether any steps were taken to carry out the plan.
To prove the defendant guilty of the crime of conspiracy, the Commonwealth must prove three things beyond a reasonable doubt:
- First: That the defendant joined in an agreement or plan with one or more other persons;
- Second: That the purpose of the agreement was to do something unlawful (or to do something that was itself lawful, but by unlawful means);
- Third: That the defendant joined the conspiracy knowing of the unlawful plan and intending to help carry it out.
It is not necessary that the conspirators formulated a formal agreement among themselves, or that they agreed on every detail of the conspiracy, or even that they met together. But the Commonwealth must prove that there was a joint plan among them, and that the defendant joined in that plan.
It is not always possible to prove a conspiracy by direct evidence. The law allows juries, where it seems reasonable, to infer that there was a conspiracy from all of the circumstances. For example, if people who know each other or have been in communication with each other are shown to have been involved in concerted actions, which all seem designed to accomplish a specific purpose, then it may be reasonable to conclude that those actions were not coincidental but were taken pursuant to a joint plan.
However, it is not enough that the defendant knew about the conspiracy or associated with conspirators. To be liable as a conspirator, the defendant must have actually joined in the conspiracy as something that he (she) wished to bring about.