Reforming Entrapment Doctrine in United States v. Hollingsworth

Abstract:     
This short essay, written for a symposium commemorating Richard Posner's twenty-fifth year as a judge, examines Judge Posner's majority opinion for a closely divided en banc decision on the federal entrapment defense. The cases considers a fundamental issue in the meaning of the element of predisposition. Judge Posner crafts a boldly innovative reading of the Supreme Court precedent on the topic, introducing the element of position or readiness to predisposition. I claim the result, properly understood, is to rationalize the doctrine of entrapment.

Keywords: undercover operations, entrapment, predisposition

JEL Classifications: K14

Accepted Paper Series