Utah Code » Title 76, Chapter 4 — Inchoate Offenses; part 76-4-2 — Conspiracy, Solicitation, and Contributing to Delinquency
Utah Code

Utah Code § 76-4-203 (2026)

Criminal solicitation of an adult

✓ current as of May 2026
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1/1/2027

As used in this section:
"Adult" means an individual who is 18 years old or older.
"Solicit" means to ask, command, encourage, importune, offer to hire, or request.
Terms defined in Section 76-1-101.5 apply to this section.
An actor commits criminal solicitation of an adult if, with the intent that a felony offense be committed, the actor solicits an adult to engage in specific conduct that, under the circumstances as the actor believes the circumstances to be, would be a felony offense or would cause the adult to be a party to the commission of a felony offense.
A violation of Subsection (2) where the actor solicits the adult to commit:
a capital felony, or a felony punishable by imprisonment for life without parole, is a first degree felony;
except as provided in Subsection (3)(c) or (d), a first degree felony is a second degree felony;
any of the following felony offenses is a first degree felony punishable by imprisonment for an indeterminate term of not fewer than three years and which may be for life:
murder, as described in Subsection 76-5-203(2)(a);
child kidnapping, as described in Section 76-5-301.1; or
except as provided in Subsection (3)(d), an offense described in Title 76, Chapter 5, Part 4, Sexual Offenses, that is a first degree felony;
except as provided in Subsection (4), any of the following felony offenses is a first degree felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of not less than 15 years and which may be for life:
rape of a child, Section 76-5-402.1;
object rape of a child, Section 76-5-402.3; or
sodomy on a child, Section 76-5-403.1;
a second degree felony is a third degree felony; and
a third degree felony is a class A misdemeanor.
If a court finds that a lesser term than the term described in Subsection (3)(d) is in the interests of justice and states the reasons for this finding on the record, the court may impose a term of imprisonment of not less than:
10 years and which may be for life;
six years and which may be for life; or
three years and which may be for life.
An actor may be convicted under this section only if the solicitation is made under circumstances strongly corroborative of the actor's intent that the offense be committed.
It is not a defense to a violation of this section that:
the adult solicited by the actor:
does not agree to act upon the solicitation;
does not commit an overt act;
does not engage in conduct constituting a substantial step toward the commission of any offense;
is not criminally responsible for the felony offense solicited;
was acquitted, was not prosecuted or convicted, or was convicted of a different offense or of a different type or degree of offense; or
is immune from prosecution; or
the actor:
belongs to a class of persons that by definition is legally incapable of committing the offense in an individual capacity; or
fails to communicate with the adult that the actor solicits to commit an offense if the intent of the actor's conduct was to effect the communication.
Nothing in this section prevents an actor who otherwise solicits an adult to engage, or intentionally aids an adult in engaging, in conduct that constitutes an offense from being prosecuted and convicted as a party to the offense under Section 76-2-202 if the adult actually commits the offense.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1994–2025 · leading case: State v. Andujar, 899 A.2d 1209 (R.I. 2006).
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State v. Andujar, 899 A.2d 1209 (R.I. 2006). “§ 21-3303 (1995); Utah Code Ann. §§ 76-4-203 , 76-4-204 (2003).”
State v. Arave, 268 P.3d 163 (Utah 2011). “3d 658 (noting that attempt requires specific intent), with Urau Cope § 76-4-203(1) ("An actor commits criminal solicitation if with intent that a felony be committed, he solicits" .”
State v. Smith, 2024 UT 13 (Utah 2024). “¶21 Smith’s second argument is that the facts of his case are analogous to the facts of Johnson. 26 The defendant, Johnson, was convicted of attempted murder after she purchased counterfeit methamphetamine from an undercover police officer with the…”
State v. Jennings, 875 P.2d 566 (Utah Ct. App. 1994). · cites it 2× “GREENWOOD, Judge: Defendant Jason Jennings appeals from his conviction of criminal solicitation to commit murder, in violation of Utah Code Ann. § 76-4-203 (Supp.1992), and attempted rape of a child, in violation of Utah Code Ann.”
State v. Chaney, 1999 UT App 309 (Utah Ct. App. 1999). “§ 76-4-203 (providing in relevant part: "An actor commits criminal solicitation if with intent that a felony be committed .”
State v. Blackwing, 2025 UT 60 (Utah 2025). · cites it 2× “UTAH CODE § 76-4-203(1) (2014). 6 As with the conspiracy charge, the State intends to prove that Blackwing selected the women for the assignment because they were already within his control.”
State v. Arave, 2009 UT App 278 (Utah Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 4× “In March 2007, Defendant was sentenced to an indeterminate term of three years to life in the Utah State Prison, where he is currently incarcerated.”
State v. Smith, 42 P.3d 1261 (Utah Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 2× “" - Finally, because the crime Smith solicited was actually committed, it would not have been proper to instruct the jury on solicitation as a lesser included offense, see Utah Code Ann. § 76-4-203 (5) (1995), and thus counsel was on firm ground in not requesting such an…”
State v. Andrus, 2025 UT 15 (Utah 2025). “” 87 ¶65 Reading the human trafficking of a child provision alongside the statute defining sexual solicitation, section 76-10-1313, persuades us that something of value actually must have been exchanged for the State to secure a conviction for human trafficking of a child.”
— Utah Code § 76-4-203(1) — 3 cases
State v. Arave, 268 P.3d 163 (Utah 2011). “3d 658 (noting that attempt requires specific intent), with Urau Cope § 76-4-203(1) ("An actor commits criminal solicitation if with intent that a felony be committed, he solicits" .”
State v. Smith, 2024 UT 13 (Utah 2024). “¶21 Smith’s second argument is that the facts of his case are analogous to the facts of Johnson. 26 The defendant, Johnson, was convicted of attempted murder after she purchased counterfeit methamphetamine from an undercover police officer with the…”
State v. Blackwing, 2025 UT 60 (Utah 2025). “UTAH CODE § 76-4-203(1) (2014). 6 As with the conspiracy charge, the State intends to prove that Blackwing selected the women for the assignment because they were already within his control.”
— Utah Code § 76-4-203(1)(a)(ii) — 1 case
State v. Andrus, 2025 UT 15 (Utah 2025). “” 87 ¶65 Reading the human trafficking of a child provision alongside the statute defining sexual solicitation, section 76-10-1313, persuades us that something of value actually must have been exchanged for the State to secure a conviction for human trafficking of a child.”
— Utah Code § 76-4-203(2) — 1 case
State v. Blackwing, 2025 UT 60 (Utah 2025). “UTAH CODE § 76-4-203(1) (2014). 6 As with the conspiracy charge, the State intends to prove that Blackwing selected the women for the assignment because they were already within his control.”
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