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26. Of which crimes, if any, is she guilty?
The girlfriend has been charged as an accomplice to burglary and larceny.
Burglary in the jurisdiction applies to any structure or building, and there is no nighttime element.
A man asked his girlfriend to lend him something he could use to break into his neighbor's padlocked storage shed in order to steal a lawn mower. She handed him a crowbar. He took the crowbar but then found a bolt cutter that the neighbor had left outside the shed. Using the bolt cutter, he cut the padlock on the shed and took the mower, which he then used to mow his girlfriend's lawn. She was surprised and pleased by this gesture.
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Burglary is defined as: (i) the breaking (actual or constructive, as done with force or threats); and (ii) entering; (iii) into the dwelling of another; (iv) with the intent to commit a felony therein. We are told that in this jurisdiction burglary applies to any structure or building, and there is no nighttime element.
An accomplice is one who aids or abets another in a criminal act or enterprise, with the intent to encourage the commission of the crime. Mere presence at a crime scene is not enough; there must be some assistance. An accomplice is liable for the original crime and other foreseeable or probable crimes committed by the principal in the course of committing the crime.
A is correct. The facts tell us that the man specifically asked the girlfriend for a tool in order for him to break into the shed to steal the lawnmower. The girlfriend handed him a crowbar. The girlfriend is guilty as an accomplice because she provided aid to the man with the intent of helping him break into the shed and steal the mower; the fact that the man ultimately used a bolt cutter to accomplish his crimes does not eliminate the girlfriend's intent to aid in the break-in.
B is incorrect. The girlfriend is guilty as an accomplice to both burglary and larceny because she provided aid to the man, by giving him a crowbar, with the intent of helping him not only to break into the shed but also to steal the mower (the object of the breaking). As previously mentioned, the fact that the man ultimately used an alternative means to accomplish his crimes does not eliminate the girlfriend's accomplice liability.
C is incorrect. The girlfriend is guilty as an accomplice to both crimes; the fact that the man ultimately used an alternative means to break into the shed does not eliminate the girlfriend's accomplice liability with respect to the burglary. She had the specific intent to aid in the break-in, and as such, criminal liability is warranted.
D is incorrect. The girlfriend is guilty as an accomplice to both crimes because she provided aid to the man with the intent of helping him break into the shed and steal the mower. The fact that the man ultimately used an alternative means to accomplish his crimes does not eliminate the girlfriend's accomplice liability.