An attempt to commit a crime consists of two elements: a specific intent to commit the crime, and a direct but ineffectual act done toward its commission.
Cal. Penal Code § 21a
THE ACT
Known as the The Penal Code
The act spans §§ 1–24 (34 sections).
Applied in 23 court decisions — leading case 41 Cal. 4th 1082 - People v. Zambrano (2007)
Most recently applied in 8 Cal. 5th 57 - People v. Fontenot (August 2019)
Added by Stats. 1986, Ch. 519, Sec. 1.
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Official source: California Legislative Information. Reproduced from public-domain California statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.