State v. St. Christopher

232 N.W.2d 798 (1975)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

D told his cousin that he wanted to kill his mother and that he needed his cousin's help. D would pay his cousin $125,000 over the years from the money he would get when his mother was dead. The cousin testified at trial that at no time during this conversation did he ever intend to participate with D. The cousin stated that he acted as though he was in on the plan. The cousin contacted the police two days later, and he was told by them to continue with the charade. The plan was to kill the mother while the father was at a livestock auction and the cousin was to gain entrance to the house and break the mother's neck and then hide her in a car trunk, weight her down with bricks and then wait until dark and throw the corpse in the river. D was put under police surveillance on the day that the murder was to take place. The alternative plan was to have D call his father and report car trouble to get him away from the house if he did not go to the auction. D was observed making phone calls, and one of these was to his father claiming he needed help with paying a bill on his car from car trouble. Then D called the cousin, this was taped by the police, and told the cousin that the plan was good to go. Shortly thereafter, D was arrested by the police. During trial, D made a motion to dismiss because the cousin never intended to agree with D to do the killing. With no agreement, there cannot be a conspiracy. D was convicted of both the attempt and conspiracy and appealed.