(a) A person obstructs justice when, with intent to prevent the apprehension or obstruct the prosecution or defense of any person, he or she knowingly commits any of the following acts:
         (1) Destroys, alters, conceals or disguises physical
    
evidence, plants false evidence, furnishes false information; or
        (2) Induces a witness having knowledge material to
    
the subject at issue to leave the State or conceal himself or herself; or
        (3) Possessing knowledge material to the subject at
    
issue, he or she leaves the State or conceals himself; or
        (4) If a parent, legal guardian, or caretaker of a
    
child under 13 years of age reports materially false information to a law enforcement agency, medical examiner, coroner, State’s Attorney, or other governmental agency during an investigation of the disappearance or death of a child under circumstances described in subsection (a) or (b) of Section 10-10 of this Code.
    (b) Sentence.

Attorney's Note

Under the Illinois Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class 3 felonybetween 2 and 5 yearsup to $25,000
For details, see § Ill. Comp. Stat. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-40
criminal case

Ask a criminal law question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a criminal defense lawyer and protect your rights.

Terms Used In Illinois Compiled Statutes 720 ILCS 5/31-4

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • State: when applied to different parts of the United States, may be construed to include the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" may be construed to include the said district and territories. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 5 ILCS 70/1.14

         (1) Obstructing justice is a Class 4 felony, except
    
as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection (b).
        (2) Obstructing justice in furtherance of streetgang
    
related or gang-related activity, as defined in § 10 of the Illinois Streetgang Terrorism Omnibus Prevention Act, is a Class 3 felony.
  Previous section
Next section  
 Article 31 Contents