Penalty for Not Reporting a Crime
In nearly all justice systems, the main firepower is reserved for the lead offender in a crime; however, those who help that person escape punishment by concealing facts are not forgotten. Under the American system, failure to report a crime can amount to an offense in itself, depending on the circumstances. Certain professional employees, such as counselors, day care and social workers or teachers, are held to a higher standard if they fail to report abuse or neglect. Doctors and nurses must report unusual behavior, such as when a wounded person requires emergency care. In drawing these distinctions, the system seeks to protect the public and hold passive participants accountable, too.
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Accessory After the Fact
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One of the most basic reporting charges is accessory after the fact, broadly defined as someone who helps or hides a criminal trying to avoid getting caught. A Tennessee attorney learned this lesson the hard way--when he was caught coaching a witness to lie on behalf of a client charged in a robbery that also involved a vicious dog attack. According to "The Legal Profession" blog, the attorney ended up having his license suspended.
Different Degrees of Concealment
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There are different degrees of concealment, depending on how the charge is defined.
Active concealment--formally known as misprision--is typically the key variable for prosecutors looking to make an accessory charge stick. As a discussion on the ExpertLaw.com legal board indicates, most state laws focus on such words as "attempt," "complicity" and "conspiracy" to establish that mere knowledge of a crime is not enough by itself to warrant prosecution.
Confidentiality Laws
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Counseling and medical professionals generally fall most affirmatively into mandatory reporting laws, designed to reach vulnerable populations--such as battered women or child sex abuse victims, for example--who would not come forward otherwise. In some instances, these laws may be designed to target specific issues--such as in Massachusetts, which imposes a $1,000 fine for failure to report fraternity hazing and requires universities to file annual compliance reports.
Obstruction of Justice
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Another key concept, obstruction of justice, applies more directly to public officials, who may be charged for perverting justice through jury or witness tampering to shield their own culpability. President Richard Nixon's downfall is the best-known example, in which he was forced to resign for his role in suppressing knowledge of his associates' activities--including the infamous Watergate hotel break-in.
Perjury
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Perjury exemplifies the basic legal standard that may come into play for not reporting a crime--whether by omission or lying under oath in a court; however, that logic may yield unintended consequences for defendants, according to the essay "Inferences in Perjury Cases" by Georgetown University linguistics professor Roger Shuy.
The essay cited a 1983 case of a union official charged with perjury in testifying about the actions of two business agents who picketed a contractor who allegedly paid non-union rates. A jury convicted the official, who apparently failed to understand a key question--whether the agents could recruit contractors. By trying to explain his actions, the official made his conviction easier--an ironic turn, Shuy observes, for someone trying to be so helpful.
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- Photo Credit "OR: Jobs for Justice Joe Sizer" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: aflcio2008 (Bernard Pollack) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
