United States v. Jackson

Vanessa Hodges recruited Martin Allen (defendant) to rob a bank. Allen agreed and on June 11, 1976, he and Robert Jackson (defendant) arrived in a car with shotguns, ammunition, masks, and other items. The three then picked up William Scott (defendant) and drove to the bank. Allen walked into the bank to check for surveillance cameras. Jackson installed a fake cardboard license plate on the car. Scott then entered the bank, but returned to the car and informed the others that there were too many customers inside. They decided to commit the robbery at a later date. Before the date came, Hodges was arrested for an unrelated offense and decided to cooperate with police. She told FBI agents that the group had planned the robbery for June 21, 1976. On that date, the three men drove to the bank in the same car. The cardboard license plate was affixed to the car while the group drove around the bank and then stopped a few blocks away. After waiting for a period, they began driving toward the bank when FBI agents surrounded the vehicle and arrested Jackson, Scott, and Allen (collectively “defendants”). In the back seat of the car were the same guns, ammunition, and masks. The defendants were charged with conspiring to commit armed robbery and two counts of attempted armed robbery of the bank. The trial court found the defendants guilty on all charges and they appealed, arguing that the court erred in finding that their conduct crossed the line which separates “mere preparation” from “attempt.”