New York statute
N.Y. Penal Law § 20.05 — Criminal liability for conduct of another; no defense
Current through 2026 legislative session (LBDC text via OpenLegislation as of 2026-07-17)
Part of Article 20: Parties to Offenses and Liability Through Accessorial Conduct, New York Penal Law.
Full text of N.Y. Penal Law § 20.05
Statutory text current through the 2026 legislative session (LBDC text via OpenLegislation as of 2026-07-17). This publication reproduces the text of the Consolidated Laws of New York as provided by the New York State Senate's Open Legislation service (Legislative Bill Drafting Commission statutory text); it is not the official statutes of the State of New York.
20.05 Criminal liability for conduct of another; no defense.
In any prosecution for an offense in which the criminal liability of
the defendant is based upon the conduct of another person pursuant to
section 20.00, it is no defense that:
1. Such other person is not guilty of the offense in question owing to
criminal irresponsibility or other legal incapacity or exemption, or to
unawareness of the criminal nature of the conduct in question or of the
defendant's criminal purpose or to other factors precluding the mental
state required for the commission of the offense in question; or
2. Such other person has not been prosecuted for or convicted of any
offense based upon the conduct in question, or has previously been
acquitted thereof, or has legal immunity from prosecution therefor; or
3. The offense in question, as defined, can be committed only by a
particular class or classes of persons, and the defendant, not belonging
to such class or classes, is for that reason legally incapable of
committing the offense in an individual capacity.
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