What is a driver’s criminal liability if without their knowledge their passenger was carrying a gun?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What is a driver’s criminal liability if without their knowledge their passenger was carrying a gun?
My daughter picked up her boyfriend in a car and then she picked up his brother. The police pulled her over for speeding and they searched the car. Her boyfriend’s brother had a gun in his backpack and all 3 got arrested. The boyfriend and my daughter had no knowledge there was a gun in his back back. She is at central booking. Is she looking at jail time? She has never been in trouble.
Asked on August 3, 2013 under Criminal Law, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
A person is not liable for the criminal acts of another unless she in some way participated in, assisted, conspired, etc. in regards to those acts. So in theory, if your daughter did not know about the gun, she should face no liability. In practice, if the evidence tends to show that she did know (e.g. her boyfriend or his brother implicate her for some reason), she could be charged and potentially convicted. You should retain a criminal defense attorney to help her.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.