If you have planned in advance to commit a crime with others, this can be charged as conspiracy. Conspiracy involves any agreement by two or more persons to break the law. This could include anything from a casually planned burglary to a sophisticated Internet crime. Types of cases could involve drug conspiracy, bank fraud, organized crime on the Internet (such as identity theft and even eBay fraud), white collar crime, robbery, etc. Most conspiracy charges are brought in federal court. Virtually all federal drug charges and many Web-based crimes, due to their often international nature, involve an additional charge for conspiracy.

The bottom line is - any person who prepares to, or acts in an illegal manner with others, is at a far greater risk of legal penalties than a person who acts alone.

It should be pointed out that, also significant are the extensive resources at the disposal of law enforcement - especially those of the federal government. Their agents often have greater ability to develop a case against a suspect than their counterparts at the state or local level, especially to trace evidence to often more incriminating sources. All these facts leads to expanded bargaining power. It can also lead to elevated sentencing if convicted.

However, prosecutors face a high burden of proof in conspiracy cases. But this can only work in your favor if you have a lawyer committed to forcing prosecutors to achieve that high burden of proof in a court of law. All the more reason to have an aggressive criminal defense lawyer on your side. If you or someone you care about is facing a case against them for conspiracy, it is important to seek out an aggressive attorney as soon as possible to help prepare for the defense of these charges.

If you are convicted of conspiracy, even if you are only convicted of planning the crime, you may face the same penalty as the person who actually committed the crime.

With federal drug cases, prosecutors use conspiracy charges in two ways--to add the penalty for participating in a conspiracy, and to increase the penalty by increasing the quantity of drugs involved. Even if you only had a small amount in your possession, if it can be traced back to the original source or kilo, federal prosecutors may charge you with conspiracy or increase the quantity of drugs in your charge - or both.