(1) A person is guilty of retaliating against a participant in the legal process when he or she engages or threatens to engage in conduct causing or intended to cause bodily injury or damage to the tangible property of a participant in the legal process or a person he or she believes may be called as a participant in the legal process in any official proceeding or because the person has participated in a legal proceeding:
(a) Attending an official proceeding, or giving or producing any testimony, record, document, or other object produced at that proceeding;

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 524.055

  • 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
  • Participant in the legal process: means any judge, prosecutor, attorney defending a criminal case, juror, or witness and includes members of the participant's immediate family. See Kentucky Statutes 524.010
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.

(b) Giving information to a law enforcement officer relating to the possible commission of an offense or a violation of conditions of probation, parole, or release pending judicial proceedings;
(c) Vote, decision, or opinion; or
(d) Performance of his or her duty.
(2) Retaliating against a participant in the legal process is a Class D felony.
(3) In order for a person to be convicted of a violation of this section, the act against a participant in the legal process or the immediate family of a participant in the legal process shall be related to the performance of a duty or role played by the participant in the legal process.
Effective: July 15, 2002
History: Amended 2002 Ky. Acts ch. 251, sec. 3, effective July 15, 2002. — Created
1986 Ky. Acts ch. 212, sec. 7, effective July 15, 1986.