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Attempt
Attempt is its own crime, such as attempted murder. Like most crimes, attempt has two components: mens rea and conduct. Of course, the conduct at issue is not conduct that directly causes harm. Rather, the conduct for attempt are the steps a defendant takes to commit the target crime.
Smallwood tells us the mens rea for attempt. It should be a familiar formula from past crimes we've studied. Rizzo provides the traditional test for conduct. It assesses how close a person has to come to committing the actual crime for those steps to count as an attempt. You can think of a spectrum from merely thinking about committing a crime, to taking a few preliminary steps, to taking the last step necessary to complete the crime. Where on this spectrum does the Rizzo test fall?
Finally, consider more generally why we punish attempt crimes. After all, we already punish murder. From the point of view of a would-be murderer, what does it add to punish attempted murder as well? What function does criminalizing attempted murder serve?
Finally, how should the legislature define the sentence for an attempt? Should it be the same as the target crime or less, and why?
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