Blackmailing is when people demand money or another benefit from someone in return for that person’s promise that he/she will not reveal compromising or damaging information about them. The act is a criminal offense in California under Penal Code 518. PC 518 is the California statute that defines the crime of extortion.
1. How does California law define “extortion”?
Penal Code 518 makes it illegal for a person to use force or threats to compel someone to hand over money or other property.1
Extortion includes threatening to:
- accuse the targeted person of a crime,
- reveal a secret about the person or his/her family, or
- expose him/her to embarrassment or disgrace.
Extortion is a felony that carries a potential sentence of up to four years in state prison.2
2. What is a California blackmail charge?
Blackmailing is a form of extortion under California law. A person blackmails another by threatening or forcing that person to do something by using threats or manipulating his/her feelings
Note that a person commits blackmail even if he/she had every right to carry out a threat.
For instance, suppose Sally works at Starbucks and notices a coworker stealing money from the cash register. She threatens to report this unless the coworker gives her a cut.
Sally certainly has a right to report her coworker’s misconduct, and possibly even a moral and employment duty to do so. But it is a crime to take advantage of the situation by trying to extort money from the culprit.
As with extortion, blackmail is a felony punishable by up to four years in state prison.
Keep in mind that extortion cases are rarely totally cut and dry. People often get wrongfully accused and the facts and evidence are many times quite ambiguous. If you’ve been accused of blackmail or extortion, seek the help of a criminal defense attorney as quickly as possible. (Refer to our article, “Sincerity is not bribery in California.“).
Legal References:
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- California Penal Code 518.
- California Penal Code 1170h PC.
