If a person that you with commits a crime, can you also be in trouble just because you were there?
Question Details: Car drives up to a campus parking lot to drop people off. One person gets out runs in to the dorms pulls the fire alarm, then runs back gets into the car. Driver pulls around to the overnight parking lot to park. Cop follows. Are any of the other people in the car liable other than the person who pulled the alarm? The people in the car didn't know that the person was going to pull the fire alarm and they were not fleeing the scene either.
Typically not. You are not criminally responsible for the actions of others unless you either conspired with the other person to pull the alarm, or you too had an intent to violate the law as well. Usually after a police investigation (if any) only the person who pulled the alarm will be charged.
