Criminal law in South Carolina recognizes a form of accomplice liability commonly referred to as the “hand of one, hand of all.” This is where a person who participates in a crime with another person or group of people can be charged with some or all the crimes committed by the other person or group as if the person participated in the separate crimes.

To be properly charged, the separate crime must be “a probable or natural consequence” of the original crime. There are many ways that these crimes could occur and it is up to the prosecution to prove that the separate crimes were performed in order to achieve the overall crime.

In everyday application, a person could be charged with crimes he was not aware of or did not participate in by associating with people who commit crimes. Prosecutors use this to compound the crimes a person is charged with so there is a better chance the person will be found guilty of one of the crimes.

Not all crimes can be linked to the original person, and it can take some extensive investigative work to prove that a person should not be charged with the secondary crimes.

Not all lawyers have the required criminal defense skills to recognize a wrongful charge, nor do all lawyers have a former Master Deputy with sixteen (16) years of law enforcement experience who is trained to investigate crimes.

These resources at the Law Office of H. Chase Harbin are used to ensure our clients are not wrongfully charged with a crime they did not commit. We focus our extensive legal and law enforcement experience to keeping your rights preserved and fighting for your freedom. If you or your loved one has been charged with a crime, call us today to set up a free consultation of your case.