Ohio Code 2921.21 – Compounding a crime
(A) No person shall knowingly demand, accept, or agree to accept anything of value in consideration of abandoning or agreeing to abandon a pending criminal prosecution.
Attorney's Note
Under the Ohio Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Misdemeanor of the first degree | up to 180 days | up to $1,000 |
Terms Used In Ohio Code 2921.21
- anything of value: includes :
(A) Money, bank bills or notes, United States treasury notes, and other bills, bonds, or notes issued by lawful authority and intended to pass and circulate as money;
(B) Goods and chattels;
(C) Promissory notes, bills of exchange, orders, drafts, warrants, checks, or bonds given for the payment of money;
(D) Receipts given for the payment of money or other property;
(E) Rights in action;
(F) Things which savor of the realty and are, at the time they are taken, a part of the freehold, whether they are of the substance or produce thereof or affixed thereto, although there may be no interval between the severing and taking away;
(G) Any interest in realty, including fee simple and partial interests, present and future, contingent or vested interests, beneficial interests, leasehold interests, and any other interest in realty;
(H) Any promise of future employment;
(I) Every other thing of value. See Ohio Code 1.03
- Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Whoever: includes all persons, natural and artificial; partners; principals, agents, and employees; and all officials, public or private. See Ohio Code 1.02
(B) It is an affirmative defense to a charge under this section when both of the following apply:
(1) The pending prosecution involved is for a violation of section 2913.02 or 2913.11, division (B)(2) of section 2913.21, or section 2913.47 of the Revised Code, of which the actor under this section was the victim.
(2) The thing of value demanded, accepted, or agreed to be accepted, in consideration of abandoning or agreeing to abandon the prosecution, did not exceed an amount that the actor reasonably believed due him as restitution for the loss caused him by the offense.
(C) When a prosecuting witness abandons or agrees to abandon a prosecution under division (B) of this section, the abandonment or agreement in no way binds the state to abandoning the prosecution.
(D) Whoever violates this section is guilty of compounding a crime, a misdemeanor of the first degree.