(a) A person commits an offense who:

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class B felony8 to 30 yearsup to $25,000
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111
criminal case

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 39-16-102

  • Benefit: means anything reasonably regarded as economic gain, enhancement or advantage, including benefit to any other person in whose welfare the beneficiary is interested. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Pecuniary benefit: means benefit in the form of money, property, commercial interests or anything else, the primary significance of which is economic gain. See Tennessee Code 39-16-101
  • Person: includes the singular and the plural and means and includes any individual, firm, partnership, copartnership, association, corporation, governmental subdivision or agency, or other organization or other legal entity, or any agent or servant thereof. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Public servant: means :
    (A) Any public officer or employee of the state or of any political subdivision of the state or of any governmental instrumentality within the state including, but not limited to, law enforcement officers. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
(1) Offers, confers, or agrees to confer any pecuniary benefit upon a public servant with the intent to influence the public servant’s vote, opinion, judgment, exercise of discretion or other action in the public servant’s official capacity; or
(2) While a public servant, solicits, accepts or agrees to accept any pecuniary benefit upon an agreement or understanding that the public servant’s vote, opinion, judgment, exercise of discretion or other action as a public servant will thereby be influenced.
(b)

(1) It is no defense to prosecution under this section that the person sought to be influenced was not qualified to act in the desired way because the person had not yet assumed office, lacked jurisdiction, or for any other reason.
(2) It is no defense to prosecution under this section that the person who sought to influence a public official took action on behalf of a public or private organization or any other entity, for the purpose of organizing a campaign or for any other lawful purpose.
(c)

(1) Bribery of a public servant under subdivision (a)(1) is a Class B felony.
(2) A public servant accepting or agreeing to accept a bribe under subdivision (a)(2) is a Class B felony.
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