: Re: How can one plan elaborate crimes for fiction without getting into trouble? The crime of conspiracy is a limitation on free speech in the united states. Merely talking about, in fine detail,

@Tiffany377

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From the Official Code of Georgia (Annotated): A person commits the offense of conspiracy to commit a crime when he together with one or more persons conspires to commit any crime and any one or more of such persons does any overt act to effect the object of the conspiracy... (OCGA 16-4-8). Further, in the 'annotated' portion of the code, "Conspiracy to commit particular substantive offense cannot exist without at least the degree of criminal intent necessary for substantive offense itself."

This lets you off the hook in two different directions. First, in order to commit the crime of conspiracy, you or someone else would have to take actual steps towards committing the underlying crime (i.e. the overt act element).

Secondly, and more importantly, Conspiracy is a specific intent crime, meaning there is a state of mind element required. This is referred to as the Mens Rea (literally, 'Guilty Mind'). You can't commit conspiracy accidentally, you have to intend to actually commit the crime and you have to intend to conspire to do so.

This is based off the Georgia state legal code, but it is representative of the criminal code elsewhere.

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