liberam legem amittere (lib-[schwa]r-[schwa]m lee-j[schwa]m [schwa]-mit-[schwa]-ree). [Latin] Hist. To lose one’s free law. • This phrase refers to falling, by crime or infamy, from the status of libera lex. By what was known as a “villenous judgment,” a person would be discredited as juror and witness, would forfeit goods and chattels and lands for life, […]
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Pinkerton rule. Criminal law. The doctrine imposing liability on a conspirator for all offenses committed in furtherance of the conspiracy, even if those offenses are actually performed by coconspirators. Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640, 66 S.Ct. 1180 (1946). [Cases: Conspiracy 41. C.J.S. Conspiracy §§ 134–137; RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations)§ 12.]
mail cover. A process by which the U.S. Postal Service provides a government agency with information on the face of an envelope or package (such as a postmark) for the agency’s use in locating a fugitive, identifying a coconspirator, or obtaining other evidence necessary to solve a crime. [Cases: Postal Service 47. C.J.S. Postal Service
locus poenitentiae (loh-k[schwa]s pen-[schwa]-ten-shee-ee). [Latin “place of repentance”] 1. A point at which it is not too late for one to change one’s legal position; the possibility of withdrawing from a contemplated course of action, esp. a wrong, before being committed to it. “The requirement of an overt act before conspirators can be prosecuted and
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slight-evidence rule. 1. The doctrine providing that, when there is evidence establishing the existence of a conspiracy between at least two other people, the prosecution need only offer slight evidence of a defendant’s knowing participation or intentional involvement in the conspiracy to secure a conviction. • This rule was first announced in Tomplain v. United
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cabal (k[schwa]-balor k[schwa]-bahl). A small group of political schemers or conspirators. • The term is sometimes said to have originated as an acronym from a committee of five ministers of Charles II, whose sur-names began with C, A, B, A, and L (Clifford, Arlington, Buckingham, Ashley, and Lauderdale). Though colorful, this etymology is false: the
Jamaican switch. An illegal scheme whereby one conspirator convinces the victim of a need for help in handling a large sum of money, usu. by claiming to have found the money or by claiming to be an unsophisticated foreigner, and promises to share part of the money with the victim or asks the victim for
conjurator (kon-j[schwa]-ray-t[schwa]r). Hist. A person who swears an oath with others; a coconspirator.
An opposing party’s admission, which is not considered hearsay if it is offered against that party and is (1) the party’s own statement, in either an individual or a representative capacity; (2) a statement of which the party has manifested an adoption or belief in its truth; (3) a statement by one authorized by the
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