If you know absolutely that a person has broken the law and you do not report them are you guilty?

Question

of failing to report a crime, hiding evidence or aiding and abetting?

So, I as a legal citizen of the USA would be hiding evidence, aiding and abetting and failing to report criminal activity if I DIDN'T report illegal immigrants, if I know they are indeed "illegal". So, it is the duty of all citizens of the USA to abide by the law and report them. If someone HIRES them they are aiding a criminal. By the simple fact they are here illegal, making them criminals, if they have children, their children could be taken away from them by DFCS because they are in a dangerous, unlawful situation.

Answer 1

Impeding an investigation, harboring a criminal.

Answer 2

Can you be prosecuted if it's found out? Probably. Are you guilty? You bet your anus. Whether or not you are convicted will depend on how good your lawyer is.

But let's look at it from a different standpoint. You have parked your brand new car you just paid cash for, for the night. Your best friend in the whole wide world sees a guy he works with break your window. He then hotwires your brand new car and races off with it. Subsequently it's sold to a chop shop and because of a technicality your insurance doesn't pay off.

When you see your buddy he doesn't say a thing but --That's too bad. How do you feel about what the buddy didn't do? That's the answer to your question. That is what you are really guilty of.

Answer 3

If you'e hiding evidence (helping someone throw out bloody clothes, for example) or actually rendering aid to a criminal (say, giving him money for a ticket out of town), you are guilty of a crime. But not reporting a crime you know to exist? That's not illegal. It's not even a little bit illegal. It's 100% legal. Refusing to answer the direct questions of the police about a crime that you know about is also 100% legal.

I do it every single day.

Answer 4

Failure to report it is a crime IF you are quite certain of the facts. Hiding evidence, BIG no-no. Anything one might do in hiding a crime could be aiding and abetting.

Answer 5

Depends on the crime obviously, but reporting fellow citizens for lesser crimes smacks of the sort of tactics used by totalitarian states, where the first duty of citizens is to the state, even before their family.

A cohesive society depends on the mutual trust of it's citizens.
So, in general terms, I don't like it.

Others have answered your question so I thought that I would add a related comment.

Answer 6

I think that it is more of a personal issue you may be struggling with. You know ...doing the right thing. Everyday we see people break the law and commit crimes, jaywalking, speeding, drinking and driving etc... most of us even know or have people who have active warrants for their arrest staying in our home. it is punishable by law if a misdemeanor offender misses court, which makes someone who knows that person guilty .......so see where i am going with this? Unless the crime has hurt or damaged someone or someones property, I personally would not make an issue of it. what comes around goes around, and everyone gets caught eventually. Hope i helped.

Answer 7

No you are under no obligation to report a crime, even under English Common Law.

As this article points out, some people are required to report because of their position.

Under our law the only crime you are mandated to report is child abuse!

Harboring a criminal is a crime, If she did not harbor one she would be breaking no law by failing to report.

Most police want to make it easier for you to want to report. Reporting can sometimes get you killed!

A. The Proposal
...Although it is still the general rule that failure to report a crime is neither a criminal
offense nor the violation of a positive duty, there has been a trend away from this
rule. For example, the law has moved toward imposing a positive duty to report crime
upon those in public service, those in an especially strong position to know of certain
crimes, or those knowing of a particularly dangerous crime. There has also been some
movement toward imposing an obligation to report crimes upon the general population.
The vast majority of states have compounding-of-felony statutes, which make it a crime
for an individual to receive consideration for not reporting an offense to the authorities.
This Note proposes that the problem of bystander failure to report crime be addressed
by making it a misdemeanor for a felony witness to fail to report the crime to the appropriate authorities.37 By limiting its application to those persons who have actually
witnessed a felony, the proposed statute avoids the potential for overbroad coverage. At the same time, the proposed statute avoids too limited a scope by providing for the
reporting of all types of felonies, rather than just those of violence. Problems of notice
are avoided by limiting the reporting obligation to those felonies that are “of such a nature
that a reasonable person in the same circumstances would know it to be a serious offense.”
A high standard of proof could ensure that only cases where there is a strong probability of guilt would be prosecuted. Those who are unable to report because of infirmities,
for example, the aged, handicapped, or ill, would have an affirmative defense, as would those who are not competent to report, such as the young, the insane, and those
who would incriminate themselves by reporting.
B. Placing Mandatory Crime Reporting in the Current Social-Legal Structure
There has been a general trend in American law of encouraging people to help one another
in civil contexts. Good samaritan statutes, state statutes requiring motorists involved
in traffic accidents to render assistance to injured parties, and the efforts of some states to
compensate citizens for aid rendered in emergencies are cases in point. As discussed earlier,
the imposition of an affirmative duty of intervention in criminal contexts would be
inappropriate. Mandatory crime reporting is more in accord with current obligations imposed
on citizens in criminal contexts and it addresses the roots of underreporting.
The control of criminality is a societal responsibility shared by all. In accordance
with this shared responsibility, society requires citizens to participate in the criminal
justice process when called upon to do so, to be witnesses at criminal trials, to be members
of juries, and to cooperate at the intake point of the criminal justice

Answer 8

You could be charged with withholding evidence; but only if you we're asked not if you simply knew and did not report. There are acceptions based on the severity of the crime. If you know a murder was committed and didn't report it you could be in serious trouble.

Answer 9

Yes

Answer 10

oh gosh if someone hides goods in your house and you no were they came from you are seen as guilty as the person that stole them
i no in some cases that the person handling stolen goods got in more trouble than the person who stole them {prison term}
respect
shaz