Conspiracy to commit a felony is a felony.

Showing up at a physical location is not the same as accidental redirection to a porn site -- or for that matter, a site devoted to any other type of criminal activity, such as, say, terrorism. Driving 300 miles for a meet is a pretty good indicator of intent.

Law enforcement does similar things in cases of people seeking contract killers. No one has to actually be killed to prove conspiracy.

Anyone who wants to offer the Lone Ranger defense will have to be prepared to substantiate it. Investigating officers will have records of the conversations leading up to the meet.

Whether or not any of these people will do jail time will depend on how thoroughly the district attorney instructed the investigating officers on legal procedure and how closely the officers followed the DA's instructions.

Regards--
Mary Anne