Criminal Solicitation in Georgia: Elements, Examples, and Defenses

What Is Criminal Solicitation?

Criminal solicitation happens when a person asks, commands, encourages, or urges another person to commit a felony. The person who asks must intend for the crime to take place. The offense is complete the moment the request is made. The crime asked for does not need to happen at all.

This makes criminal solicitation an inchoate offense. Attempt and conspiracy are inchoate offenses too. These crimes punish the act of setting a crime in motion, even when the planned crime never takes place. Georgia codifies this offense as criminal solicitation. The law reaches anyone who "solicits, requests, commands, importunes, or otherwise attempts to cause" another person to commit a felony.

Many people misunderstand this crime. They assume they cannot face charges unless the other person agrees or acts. That is not the law. The crime of solicitation is complete upon the asking. Prosecutors do not need to prove that anyone carried out the underlying offense.

Elements of Solicitation Under the Law

To win a conviction, the State must prove specific elements of solicitation beyond a reasonable doubt. Under Georgia law, these are the solicitation elements:

1. The defendant solicited, requested, commanded, importuned, or otherwise attempted to cause another person to engage in certain conduct.
2. That conduct would be a felony.
3. The defendant acted with specific intent that the other person commit the crime.

The first element focuses on the request itself. Prosecutors often rely on recorded phone calls, text messages, emails, or testimony from informants to prove the request was made. In Georgia courts, pretrial fights often center on whether those records can come in, and on what they show.

The second element requires proof that the conduct asked for would be a felony. The statute places no requirement on the solicited person's state of mind, only on the defendant's intent. What matters is whether the requested act would, in fact, constitute a felony.

The third element – specific intent – is usually the most contested. The defendant must have truly meant for the other person to commit the crime. Idle talk, sarcasm, or what-if talk usually fails this test. Defense counsel looks hard at the context, the tone, and the facts around the alleged request.

At common law, solicitation existed as a standalone offense long before modern criminal codes. Georgia's statute codified the doctrine while preserving its core principle. No overt act beyond the solicitation itself is required. The communication alone completes the offense. This distinguishes solicitation from attempt and conspiracy, which each require additional conduct beyond mere words.

Is Soliciting a Crime? Real-World Examples

Soliciting another person to commit a felony is itself a separate criminal offense in Georgia. You do not need to carry out any illegal act yourself. The mere act of asking someone else to do it – and meaning it – is enough.

Here are common solicitation crime examples that arise in criminal practice:

• Solicitation of murder. Offering money or some other reward to hire someone to kill another person. This is the form the State charges most often, and it carries the stiffest sentence.
• Arson for insurance money. Asking a friend to burn down a building so the owner can collect on the policy. Both the request and the arson itself are felonies.
• Soliciting a theft. Offering to pay someone to steal property, such as cars or goods from a store, where the theft would be a felony.
• Bribery of a public official. Requesting that a government employee accept money in exchange for favorable treatment, permits, or dropped charges.
• Soliciting a minor for an illegal act. Encouraging a minor to take part in felony conduct, which may trigger extra charges under child protection laws.

Prostitution solicitation is different. In Georgia, solicitation of prostitution is usually charged under its own statute, not under the general criminal solicitation rule. The general solicitation statute applies to felony conduct. Prostitution offenses sit in their own part of the code.

Criminal Solicitation vs. Attempt and Conspiracy

Georgia law recognizes three inchoate offenses. The differences explain how prosecutors choose charges.

Solicitation requires only that one person ask, encourage, or command another to commit a felony. The offense is complete upon the request. The solicited person does not need to agree, take any action, or even consider the proposal. Under Georgia law, the defendant's communication – paired with specific intent – is all that matters.

Criminal attempt is different. Under Georgia law, criminal attempt occurs when a person intends to commit a specific crime and takes a substantial step toward it. Attempt requires the defendant to act toward the crime in person. The defendant cannot just ask someone else to do it.

Conspiracy requires a deal between two or more people to commit a crime. It also requires at least one overt act to further that deal. Under Georgia law, conspiracy occurs when a person conspires with one or more people to commit any crime and at least one of them commits an overt act to further the object of the conspiracy. Conspiracy takes both a shared plan and an act. Solicitation does not.

This matters in practice. The charge sticks even if the person asked refuses outright. It sticks when that person reports the request to police. It sticks even when that person is an undercover officer. Under Georgia law, it is no defense that the person solicited could not be guilty of the crime solicited.

If the solicited person agrees and takes an overt act, the case may ripen from solicitation into conspiracy. Prosecutors may then charge both offenses or pick the one that fits the evidence most cleanly.

Penalties for Criminal Solicitation in Georgia

Georgia sets two sentencing ranges for solicitation. Which one applies turns on how the solicited crime can be punished. Under Georgia law:

• Solicitation to commit a felony carries imprisonment for not less than one nor more than three years.
• Solicitation to commit a crime punishable by death or life imprisonment carries imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years.

Beyond incarceration, a conviction may result in fines, restitution, and probation conditions at the sentencing judge's discretion. A felony conviction also creates a permanent criminal record that can affect employment, housing, professional licensing, and civil rights.

The penalties reflect the seriousness with which Georgia treats the act of setting crimes in motion. Even though the solicited offense may never occur, the law punishes the defendant's intent and effort to cause it.

Sentencing outcomes depend on several factors. These include the nature of the solicited offense, the defendant's criminal history, and the strength of the evidence. Anyone facing a solicitation charge should consult a criminal defense attorney about the penalties they may face.

Common Defenses to a Solicitation Charge

Several defenses come up often in solicitation cases. How strong each one is depends on the facts and the evidence.

Lack of specific intent. The prosecution must prove the defendant truly meant for the other person to commit the crime. If the defendant was joking, talking in what-ifs, or just blowing off steam, specific intent may fail. An offhand remark with no real purpose also falls short. Defense counsel examines the whole exchange in context – the tone, the relationship between the parties, and the surrounding circumstances.

Entrapment. Under Georgia law, entrapment occurs when a government officer, employee, or agent induces or solicits conduct to obtain evidence. Entrapment exists where the government actor came up with the idea and intent of the crime and used undue persuasion, incitement, or deceitful means. The defendant must show they would not have done it otherwise. Under Georgia law, entrapment is an affirmative defense and the defendant bears the burden of raising it.

First Amendment protection. In narrow cases, the alleged solicitation may involve speech the First Amendment protects. It may not be a true request to commit a crime. Courts draw a line between abstract advocacy – which may be protected – and direct, specific urging to commit one named crime. This defense comes up most often when the alleged request was made in a public forum, an online post, or a political setting.

Not enough evidence of a clear request. The prosecution must prove the defendant made an actual request, command, or demand. Vague words that could be read more than one way may not meet this bar. Defense attorneys often challenge whether the evidence shows a request clear enough to count as solicitation.

Speak With a Georgia Criminal Defense Attorney

Criminal solicitation charges are serious felonies in Georgia. A conviction could mean prison time, a permanent record, and lasting harm to your career and personal life. Early intervention by a criminal defense lawyer is critical. This is particularly true before you say anything to police that could be used as evidence.

If you are facing or expecting a solicitation charge in Georgia, call William C. Head, PC for a free consultation. Our firm focuses on Georgia criminal defense. We are familiar with how these cases are investigated and prosecuted in Atlanta – area courts.

During your consultation, you will get a private review of the charges against you. We will go over the defenses that may apply to your case. We will spell out the next steps in the legal process. Every case is different. Results depend on the specific facts.

Frequently Asked Questions About Criminal Solicitation

Is Criminal Solicitation a Felony?

Criminal solicitation is a felony in Georgia. Under Georgia law, a conviction for solicitation to commit a felony carries one to three years in prison. If the solicited crime can be punished by death or life in prison, the term is one to five years. Those are the only two sentencing ranges the statute sets. It does not scale the sentence to the punishment for the finished crime.

Can You Be Convicted of Solicitation if the Crime Never Happened?

A conviction is possible even if the crime never happened. Solicitation is complete the moment the request, command, or demand is made with the required intent. The solicited person does not need to agree. The crime asked for does not need to be tried or finished. A conviction can stand even if the person asked refuses on the spot or reports the request to police. The one who asked may still face charges.

What Is the Difference Between Solicitation and Conspiracy?

Solicitation requires only a request or an urging by one person aimed at another. Conspiracy requires an actual agreement between two or more people to commit a crime. Under Georgia law, conspiracy also requires that at least one person commit an overt act in furtherance of the agreement. A solicitation that is accepted may ripen into conspiracy once a shared plan and an overt act exist.

Can I Be Charged With Solicitation if I Was Talking to an Undercover Officer?

A charge is possible even if you were talking to an undercover officer. Who you asked does not matter. Under Georgia law, it is no defense that the person solicited could not be guilty of the crime solicited. Soliciting an undercover officer or informant can still support a charge. However, entrapment may be a defense. Entrapment applies if police came up with the idea and used undue persuasion to induce conduct you would not otherwise have committed.