Under
criminal law
Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law ...
, a principal is any actor who is primarily responsible for a criminal offense.
[See, e.g., Superior Growers, 982 F.2d at 177-78; United States v. Campa, 679 F.2d 1006, 1013 (lst Cir. 1982).] Such an actor is distinguished from others who may also be subject to criminal liability as
accomplice
Under the English common law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even if they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the telle ...
s,
accessories
Accessory may refer to:
* Accessory (legal term), a person who assists a criminal
In anatomy
* Accessory bone
* Accessory muscle
* Accessory nucleus, in anatomy, a cranial nerve nucleus
* Accessory nerve
In arts and entertainment
* Accessory ...
or
conspirators.
See also
*
Principal (commercial law)
In commercial law, a principal is a person, legal or natural, who authorizes an agent to act to create one or more legal relationships with a third party. This branch of law is called agency and relies on the common law proposition (from Lat ...
Notes and references
External links
*
Legal terminology
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