The Three Pillars of Attempt Defence
The defence of a criminal attempt stands on three norms of the General Part of the Criminal Code: Article 19 defines attempt — a deliberate act directly aimed at the commission of a crime but not brought to its end; Article 21 creates the barrier of voluntary abandonment; and Article 56 sets the rule for sentencing for an unfinished crime. The combination of these three norms structures every attempt case. A boundary is noted as well: the common-law doctrine of "merger" of the attempt into the completed offence does not exist in Georgian doctrine — attempt stands as a distinct qualification with its own sentencing rule.
The Definition and Voluntary Abandonment
The definition of attempt unites two elements: the act must be deliberate and directly aimed at the commission of the crime; and the crime has not been brought to its end. It is on this second element that the two classical defence questions are born: what circumstance prevented completion, and whether the result could have occurred at all. The voluntary-abandonment norm builds on this boundary: liability does not attach where the person voluntarily and finally abandoned the completion of the crime; upon abandonment, liability arises only if the act actually committed constitutes another crime. For accomplices the law contemplates separate rules: the organizer, instigator and aider are not liable where they dissuaded the executor, timely informed an organ of authority, or otherwise prevented the executor or another accomplice and thereby did not allow the crime to be completed; the aider is also not liable where, before commencement by the executor, he refused the promised act, or returned the weapon or means transferred for the commission before completion. Where the measures taken failed to prevent completion, the court may consider them a mitigating circumstance. And finally, liability does not attach to one who did everything dependent on him for the realization of the result but then, by his own voluntary act, averted that result.
Sentencing for Attempt
Liability for attempt is determined by the article punishing the completed crime, with reference to this article — the qualification is the same, marked as attempt. In sentencing, the court takes into account the circumstances by reason of which the crime was not brought to its end — a criterion named by the law, and precisely the place where defence argumentation works: how far the person was from the result, what stopped him and who. An additional boundary: life imprisonment cannot be appointed for attempt — nor for preparation. These two rules together create the sentencing prognosis without which no position can be built in an attempt case: the defence sees in advance which type of sentence is excluded altogether and within which range the appointment will occur.
The Circumstances of Non-Completion and Their Weight
The law obliges the court to take into account the circumstances of non-completion, and the defence works this formula in three directions. First — the distance from the result: how many steps remained, what was left to be done; second — the nature of the stopping force: the person's own desistance, external interference, chance or the victim's resistance; third — the motive of the voluntary abandonment: conscience, fear or external circumstances, since voluntariness and finality are two independent conditions, each established separately. In practice it is precisely the documentary examination of these three questions that determines whether the accusation remains at attempt or grows, and how far the sentence is mitigated by the non-completion. The defence also checks the separate roles of the participants, since the abandonment rules must fit each role individually: the executor's desistance and the aider's return of the weapon describe different factual situations, and one and the same evidence cannot establish both. The defence examines the temporal moment as well: the precise fixation of the beginning of the attempt in the case materials often breaks the chronology of the accusation, and such a gap affects the qualification too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer the most common questions about attempt defence.
What is attempt?
A deliberate act directly aimed at the commission of a crime, but not brought to its end.
When does liability not attach?
On voluntary and final abandonment; also on voluntary averting of the result.
How is attempt punished?
Under the article of the completed crime, with reference to attempt; the circumstances of non-completion affect the sentence.
Can life imprisonment be imposed?
No — life imprisonment cannot be appointed for attempt.
What happens with accomplices?
The organizer, instigator and aider are not liable where they dissuaded the executor, timely informed an organ of authority or otherwise prevented completion; the aider — also by refusal or return of the weapon.
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