9th Cir. Model Jury Instr. (Criminal) 20.12

The defendant is charged in [Count _______ of] the indictment with attempted sexual abuse of a minor in violation of Section 2243(a) of Title 18 of the United States Code. For the defendant to be found guilty of that charge, the government must prove each of the following elements beyond a reasonable doubt:

First, the defendant intended to engage in a sexual act with [name of victim], who had reached the age of twelve years but had not reached the age of sixteen years;

Second, [name of victim] was at least four years younger than the defendant;

Third, the defendant did something that was a substantial step toward committing the crime; and

Fourth, the offense was committed at [specify place of federal jurisdiction].

A “substantial step” is conduct that strongly corroborated the defendant’s intent to commit the crime. To constitute a substantial step, a defendant’s act or actions must unequivocally demonstrate that the crime will take place unless interrupted by independent circumstances. Mere preparation is not a substantial step toward committing the crime.

Jurors do not need to agree unanimously as to which particular act or actions constituted a substantial step toward the commission of a crime.

The government need not prove that the defendant knew the age of [name of victim] or that the defendant knew that [name of victim] was at least four years younger than the defendant.

In this case, “sexual act” means [specify statutory definition].