accessary

9.4

A person who helps someone avoid arrest after they commit a crime

noun
/ˈæk.səˌsɛr.i/

Archaic

: cómplice

The court found the driver to be an accessary to the robbery, even though he did not enter the bank.

Examples

In some jurisdictions, being an accessary to a crime carries a severe penalty.
She was charged as an accessary after the fact for helping the suspect escape.
The police arrested the accessary to the robbery.
She acted as an accessary by planning the heist.
In some jurisdictions, being an accessary to a crime carries a severe penalty.
She was charged as an accessary after the fact for helping the suspect escape.
The court found the driver to be an accessary to the robbery, even though he did not enter the bank.

Synonyms

accomplice

vsaccessary

172 6.7

Person who helps another person commit a crime

focuses on absence at the scene, not participation in the act

accessory

vsaccessary

Specialized

59 7.7

A person who helps someone commit a crime without taking part directly

is defined by being absent during the crime rather than by not acting

aider

vsaccessary

Formal

1 9.3

A person who helps another person commit a crime, for example by giving a getaway car

highlights that the helper is not present when the crime happens

accessory before the fact

vsaccessary

Specialized

1 8.9

A person who helps plan a crime but is not there when it happens

has the same meaning but is the simpler, less formal wording

Surface Forms

accessary singular

accessaries plural

Morphology

accessary = access (opaque) = access + ary

Although formed from 'access' + '-ary', the legal sense 'a person who helps commit a crime' is not derivable from 'access' by standard rules for learners.

Etymology

Accessary comes from an old Latin idea meaning 'added' or 'joined', and it is like the word accessory which means something extra. So an accessary is someone 'added' to a crime — a helper who helped but was not there during the act.