Graves

This case requires us to construe the federal statute governing the offense of accessory after the fact; in doing so, we contrast its provisions with those contained in conspiracy and aiding and abetting statutes. See 18 U.S.C. §§ 2 (a), 3, & 371. We must decide in particular whether the crime of being an accessory after the fact to a felon in possession of a firearm requires that the defendant have knowledge not only that the person who committed the primary offense (“the offender”) possessed a gun (which may ordinarily be perfectly legal), but also that he was a felon (which renders the possession illegal under federal law). 18 U.S.C. §_ 922(g)(1).

Because the accessory after the fact statute specifically requires that the defendant have acted with knowledge that “an offense against the United States has been committed,” we conclude that the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt -that the accessory was aware that the offender had engaged in conduct that satisfies the essential elements of the primary federal offense. To put it more precisely,' the accessory must know that the offender had engaged in the conduct that constitutes the federal offense— though not…