Sorrells v. United States
United States Supreme Court
287 U.S. 435 (1932)
Relevant factsFree
An undercover federal agent, having befriended Sorrells (defendant) during Prohibition, twice asked whether Sorrells had liquor (he did not) before directly asking him to go buy some, which Sorrells then did; Sorrells was convicted of violating the Prohibition Act and appealed.
IssueFree
Whether a government agent may implant in the mind of an innocent person the disposition to commit a crime and induce its commission in order to prosecute that crime.