(1) A person is guilty of bribing a witness when he offers, confers or agrees to confer any pecuniary benefit upon a witness or a person he believes may be called as a witness in any official proceeding with intent to:
(a) Influence the testimony of that person; or

Attorney's Note

Under the Kentucky Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class D felonybetween 1 and 5 yearsbetween $1,000 and $10,000
For details, see § 532.060

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Terms Used In Kentucky Statutes 524.020

  • Official proceeding: means a proceeding heard before any legislative, judicial, administrative or other governmental agency or official authorized to hear evidence under oath, including any referee, hearing examiner, commissioner, notary or other person taking testimony or depositions in any such proceedings. See Kentucky Statutes 524.010
  • Pecuniary benefit: means benefit in the form of money, property, commercial interests, or anything else the primary significance of which is economic gain. See Kentucky Statutes 524.010
  • Testify: Answer questions in court.
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
  • Witness: means any person who may be called to testify in an official proceeding, has been called to testify in an official proceeding, is testifying in an official proceeding, or who has testified in an official proceeding. See Kentucky Statutes 524.010

(b) Induce that person to avoid legal process summoning him to testify; or
(c) Induce that person to absent himself from an official proceeding to which he has been legally summoned.
(2) Bribing a witness is a Class D felony.
Effective: January 1, 1975
History: Created 1974 Ky. Acts ch. 406, sec. 201, effective January 1, 1975.