Solicitation is the illegal activity that occurs when one person deliberately uses various tactics to persuade someone else to join them in the commission of a crime.
Someone can be charged with this offense even if the person who they've persuaded to engage in illegal activity doesn't actually follow through.
Solicitation is most often associated with the drug trade and prostitution.
In order to convict someone on a criminal solicitation charge, a prosecutor must generally prove:
For example, take a corruption case in which a politician is charged with soliciting a bribe. The prosecutor must prove that the defendant somehow convinced another party to give them money in return for a favorable vote on a land use issue. The prosecutor must also prove that the defendant planned on accepting it and voting accordingly.