Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (2026)

Classification

✓ current as of May 2026
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A criminal attempt is a:

  1. Class Y felony if the offense attempted is capital murder;
  2. Class A felony if the offense attempted is treason or a Class Y felony other than capital murder;
  3. Class B felony if the offense attempted is a Class A felony;
  4. Class C felony if the offense attempted is a Class B felony;
  5. Class D felony if the offense attempted is a Class C felony;
  6. Class A misdemeanor if the offense attempted is a Class D felony or an unclassified felony;
  7. Class B misdemeanor if the offense attempted is a Class A misdemeanor;
  8. Class C misdemeanor if the offense attempted is a Class B misdemeanor; or
  9. Violation if the offense attempted is a Class C misdemeanor or an unclassified misdemeanor.

History. Acts 1975, No. 280, § 703; 1981, No. 620, § 3; A.S.A. 1947, § 41-703; Acts 2005, No. 1888, § 1.

Cross References. Fines, § 5-4-201.

Term of imprisonment, § 5-4-401.

Research References

Ark. L. Rev.

Case Note, Criminal Liability for Attempting to Inflict the AIDS Virus: Possibilities in Arkansas' Future, 45 Ark. L. Rev. 505.

Case Notes

Conviction Set Aside.

Where defendant was convicted of both attempted capital murder, ostensibly the more serious crime, which was a Class A felony, and aggravated robbery, a Class Y felony, the trial court properly set aside the attempted capital murder conviction based on the classification of the crime, rather than whether it was a lesser included offense. Beard v. State, 306 Ark. 546, 816 S.W.2d 860 (1991).

Reasonable Cause to Arrest.

Denial of motion to suppress was not clearly against the preponderance of the evidence, because the inventory search of defendant's vehicle was proper upon defendant's lawful arrest, and it was standard police policy to inventory the contents of any vehicle before having it towed; at the time of defendant's arrest theft of property was a Class C felony if the value of the property was less than $2,500 but more than $500, and criminal attempt was a Class D felony if the offense attempted was a Class C felony. Boykin v. State, 2012 Ark. App. 274, 409 S.W.3d 321 (2012).

Cited: Glenn v. United States Dep't of Labor, Occupational Safety & Health Admin., 517 F. Supp. 362 (E.D. Ark. 1981); Wilson v. State, 277 Ark. 219, 640 S.W.2d 440 (1982); Rowe v. Lockhart, 736 F.2d 457 (8th Cir. 1984); Bell v. Lockhart, 741 F.2d 1105 (8th Cir. 1984); Powell v. State, 33 Ark. App. 1, 799 S.W.2d 566 (1990); Davidson v. State, 305 Ark. 592, 810 S.W.2d 327 (1991); Wright v. State, 80 Ark. App. 114, 91 S.W.3d 553 (2002); Small v. State, 371 Ark. 244, 264 S.W.3d 512 (2007).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 15 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1990–2026 · leading case: Flowers v. Norris, 68 S.W.3d 289 (Ark. 2002).
Flowers v. Norris, 68 S.W.3d 289 (Ark. 2002). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (1) (Repl. 1997).”
Small v. State, 264 S.W.3d 512 (Ark. 2007). · cites it 2× “Attempted rape was a Class A felony under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (Repl. 1997) and second degree sexual assault was a Class B felony under Ark.”
Davidson v. State, 810 S.W.2d 327 (Ark. 1991). · cites it 4× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (4) (1987). Here, by twice proffering the stolen credit card, the appellant took a substantial step toward committing the crime, which qualifies as an attempt under state law.”
Smith v. Hobbs, 2013 Ark. 400 (Ark. 2013). · cites it 2× “Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-3-203(1) (Repl. 2006) provides that a criminal attempt is a Class Y felony if the offense attempted is capital murder.”
Albert Dirickson v. State of Arkansas, 2021 Ark. 36 (Ark. 2021). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (A)(1) (Repl. 1993) (stating in pertinent part that criminal attempt to commit capital murder and all Y felonies are classified as A felonies); see also Ark.”
United States v. Christopher D. Livingston, Also Known as John Thurman, 442 F.3d 1082 (8th Cir. 2006). “Furthermore, if the evidence supported those facts, Livingston could have been charged with the potentially more serious crime of attempted auto theft.”
Wright v. State, 91 S.W.3d 553 (Ark. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 4× “See Ark.Code Ann. §§ 5-3-203 and 5-36-103(b)(1)(A) (Repl.”
Drakease Hall v. State of Arkansas, 2022 Ark. 16 (Ark. 2022). · cites it 2× “Attempted first-degree murder under Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-3-203(2) (Repl. 2006) is a Class A felony if the offense attempted is a Class Y felony other than capital murder.”
Thernell Hundley v. Dexter Payne, Dir., Arkansas Dep't of Corr., 2024 Ark. 19 (Ark. 2024). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (1987); Ark. Code Ann.”
Beard v. State, 816 S.W.2d 860 (Ark. 1991). · cites it 2× “In this case, attempted capital murder is a class A felony Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (1) (1987) and aggravated robbery is a class Y felony.”
Powell v. State, 799 S.W.2d 566 (Ark. Ct. App. 1990). · cites it 2× “” Having been found guilty of criminal attempt of breaking or entering, a Class A misdemeanor under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (1987) punishable for a period of imprisonment not to exceed one year under Ark.”
Bryan Smith v. State of Arkansas, 2023 Ark. App. 513 (Ark. Ct. App. 2023). · cites it 2× “However, because this was an attempt, the offense was a Class A felony under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203 (Repl. 2013). 3 The DWI charge was dismissed.”
— Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203(1) — 1 case
Smith v. Hobbs, 2013 Ark. 400 (Ark. 2013). “Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-3-203(1) (Repl. 2006) provides that a criminal attempt is a Class Y felony if the offense attempted is capital murder.”
— Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203(2) — 1 case
Drakease Hall v. State of Arkansas, 2022 Ark. 16 (Ark. 2022). “Attempted first-degree murder under Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-3-203(2) (Repl. 2006) is a Class A felony if the offense attempted is a Class Y felony other than capital murder.”
— Ark. Code Ann. § 5-3-203(5) — 1 case
Boykin v. State, 409 S.W.3d 321 (Ark. Ct. App. 2012).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.