Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 705 — Inchoate Crimes

Division 5. Crimes and Criminal Proceedings — Title 37. Hawaii Penal Code

Hawaii Revised Statutes as published by the Hawaii State Legislature (files updated 1/5/2026 7:15 PM).

Division 5 Crimes and Criminal Proceedings

Title 37 Hawaii Penal Code

Chapter 705 Inchoate Crimes

Part I Criminal Attempt

§705-500 Criminal attempt

(1) A person is guilty of an attempt to commit a crime if the person:

(a) Intentionally engages in conduct which would constitute the crime if the attendant circumstances were as the person believes them to be; or

(b) Intentionally engages in conduct which, under the circumstances as the person believes them to be, constitutes a substantial step in a course of conduct intended to culminate in the person's commission of the crime.

(2) When causing a particular result is an element of the crime, a person is guilty of an attempt to commit the crime if, acting with the state of mind required to establish liability with respect to the attendant circumstances specified in the definition of the crime, the person intentionally engages in conduct which is a substantial step in a course of conduct intended or known to cause such a result.

(3) Conduct shall not be considered a substantial step under this section unless it is strongly corroborative of the defendant's criminal intent.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-501 Criminal attempt; attempting to aid another

(1) A person who engages in conduct intended to aid another to commit a crime is guilty of an attempt to commit the crime, although the crime is not committed or attempted by the other person, provided his conduct would establish his complicity under sections 702-222 through 702-226 if the crime were committed or attempted by the other person.

(2) It is not a defense to a prosecution under this section that under the circumstances it was impossible for the defendant to aid the other person in the commission of the offense, provided he could have done so had the circumstances been as he believed them to be.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

§705-502 Grading of criminal attempt

An attempt to commit a crime is an offense of the same class and grade as the most serious offense which is attempted.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

Part II Criminal Solicitation

§705-510 Criminal solicitation

(1) A person is guilty of criminal solicitation if, with the intent to promote or facilitate the commission of a crime, the person commands, encourages, or requests another person to engage in conduct or cause the result specified by the definition of an offense or to engage in conduct which would be sufficient to establish complicity in the specified conduct or result.

(2) It is immaterial under subsection (1) that the defendant fails to communicate with the person the defendant solicits if the defendant's conduct was designed to effect such communication.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-511 Immunity, irresponsibility, or incapacity of a party to criminal solicitation

(1) A person shall not be liable under section 705-510 for criminal solicitation of another if under sections 702-224(1) and (2) and 702-225(1) he would not be legally accountable for the conduct of the other person.

(2) It is not a defense to a prosecution under section 705-510 that the person solicited could not be guilty of committing the crime because:

(a) He is, by definition of the offense, legally incapable in an individual capacity of committing the offense solicited;

(b) He is penally irresponsible or has an immunity to prosecution or conviction for the commission of the crime;

(c) He is unaware of the criminal nature of the conduct in question or of the defendant's criminal intent; or

(d) He does not have the state of mind sufficient for the commission of the offense in question.

(3) It is not a defense to a prosecution under section 705-510 that the defendant is, by definition of the offense, legally incapable in an individual capacity of committing the offense solicited.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

§705-512 Grading of criminal solicitation

Criminal solicitation is an offense one class or grade, as the case may be, less than the offense solicited; provided that criminal solicitation to commit murder in any degree is a class A felony.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; am L 1997, c 149, §2]

Part III Criminal Conspiracy

§705-520 Criminal conspiracy

A person is guilty of criminal conspiracy if, with intent to promote or facilitate the commission of a crime:

(1) He agrees with one or more persons that they or one or more of them will engage in or solicit the conduct or will cause or solicit the result specified by the definition of the offense; and

(2) He or another person with whom he conspired commits an overt act in pursuance of the conspiracy.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

§705-521 Scope of conspiratorial relationship

If a person guilty of criminal conspiracy, as defined in section 705-520, knows that a person with whom he conspires to commit a crime has conspired with another person or persons to commit the same crime, he is guilty of conspiring to commit the crime with such other person or persons, whether or not he knows their identity.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

§705-522 Conspiracy with multiple criminal objectives

If a person conspires to commit a number of crimes, the person is guilty of only one conspiracy if the multiple crimes are the object of the same agreement or continuous conspiratorial relationship.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-523 Immunity, irresponsibility, or incapacity of a party to criminal conspiracy

(1) A person shall not be liable under section 705-520 for criminal conspiracy if under sections 702-224(1) and (2) and 702-225(1) he would not be legally accountable for the conduct of the other person.

(2) It is not a defense to a prosecution under section 705-520 that a person with whom the defendant conspires could not be guilty of committing the crime because:

(a) He is, by definition of the offense, legally incapable in an individual capacity of committing the offense;

(b) He is penally irresponsible or has an immunity to prosecution or conviction for the commission of the crime;

(c) He is unaware of the criminal nature of the conduct in question or of the defendant's criminal intent; or

(d) He does not have the state of mind sufficient for the commission of the offense in question.

(3) It is not a defense to a prosecution under section 705-520 that the defendant is, by definition of the offense, legally incapable in an individual capacity of committing the offense that is the object of the conspiracy.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]

§705-524 Venue in criminal conspiracy prosecutions

For purposes of determining venue in a prosecution for criminal conspiracy, a criminal conspiracy is committed in any circuit in which the defendant enters into the conspiracy and in any circuit in which the defendant or person with whom the defendant conspires does an overt act.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-525 Duration of conspiracy

For purposes of section 701-108, the following apply:

(1) Conspiracy is a continuing course of conduct which terminates when the crime or crimes which are its object are committed or the agreement that they be committed is abandoned by the defendant and by those with whom the defendant conspired.

(2) It is prima facie evidence that the agreement has been abandoned if neither the defendant nor anyone with whom the defendant conspired did any overt act in pursuance of the conspiracy during the applicable period of limitation.

(3) If an individual abandons the agreement, the conspiracy is terminated as to the individual only if and when the individual advises those with whom the individual conspired of the individual's abandonment or the individual informs the law-enforcement authorities of the existence of the conspiracy and of the individual's participation therein.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-526 Grading of criminal conspiracy

(1) A conspiracy to commit murder in any degree is a class A felony.

(2) Except as provided in subsection (1), a conspiracy to commit a class A felony is a class B felony.

(3) Except as provided in subsections (1) and (2), conspiracy to commit a crime is an offense of the same class and grade as the most serious offense which is an object of the conspiracy.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; am L 1997, c 149, §3]

Part IV General Provisions Relating to Inchoate Offenses

§705-530 Renunciation of attempt, solicitation, or conspiracy; affirmative defense

(1) In a prosecution for criminal attempt, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant, under circumstances manifesting a voluntary and complete renunciation of the defendant's criminal intent, gave timely warning to law-enforcement authorities or otherwise made a reasonable effort to prevent the conduct or result which is the object of the attempt.

(2) In a prosecution for criminal solicitation, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant, under circumstances manifesting a complete and voluntary renunciation of the defendant's criminal intent:

(a) First notified the person solicited of the defendant's renunciation[;]

(b) Gave timely warning to law-enforcement authorities or otherwise made a reasonable effort to prevent the conduct or result solicited.

(3) In a prosecution for criminal conspiracy, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant, under circumstances manifesting a voluntary and complete renunciation of the defendant's criminal intent, gave timely warning to law-enforcement authorities or otherwise made a reasonable effort to prevent the conduct or result which is the object of the conspiracy.

(4) A renunciation is not "voluntary and complete" within the meaning of this section if it is motivated in whole or in part by:

(a) A belief that circumstances exist which increase the probability of detection or apprehension of the accused or another participant in the criminal enterprise, or which render more difficult the accomplishment of the criminal purpose; or

(b) A decision to postpone the criminal conduct until another time or to transfer the criminal effort to another victim or another but similar objective.

(5) A warning to law-enforcement authorities is not "timely" within the meaning of this section unless the authorities, reasonably acting upon the warning, would have the opportunity to prevent the conduct or result. An effort is not "reasonable" within the meaning of this section unless the defendant, under reasonably foreseeable circumstances, would have prevented the conduct or result.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; gen ch 1993]

§705-531 Multiple convictions

A person may not be convicted of more than one offense defined by this chapter for conduct designed to commit or culminate in the commission of the same substantive crime.

[L 1972, c 9, pt of §1]