(a) A person commits an offense who, by means of coercion, influences or attempts to influence a witness or prospective witness in an official proceeding with intent to influence the witness to:

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class D felony2 to 12 yearsup to $5,000
class A misdemeanorup to 11 monthsup to $2,500
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111
criminal case

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 39-16-507

  • Coercion: means a threat, however communicated, to:
    (A) Commit any offense. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Defendant: means a person accused of an offense under this title and includes any person who aids or abets the commission of such offense. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • 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.
  • Official proceeding: means any type of administrative, executive, legislative or judicial proceeding that may be conducted before a public servant authorized by law to take statements under oath. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • 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
  • Testify: Answer questions in court.
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(1) Testify falsely;
(2) Withhold any truthful testimony, truthful information, document or thing; or
(3) Elude legal process summoning the witness to testify or supply evidence, or to be absent from an official proceeding to which the witness has been legally summoned.
(b) A violation of this section is a Class D felony.
(c) A defendant in a criminal case involving domestic assault, pursuant to § 39-13-111, or a person acting at the direction of the defendant, commits an offense who, by any means of persuasion that is not coercion, intentionally influences or attempts to influence a witness or prospective witness in an official proceeding to:

(1) Testify falsely;
(2) Withhold any truthful testimony, information, document, or evidence; or
(3) Elude legal process summoning the witness to testify or supply evidence, or to be absent from an official proceeding to which the witness has been legally summoned.
(d) A violation of subsection (c) is a Class A misdemeanor and, upon conviction, the sentence runs consecutively to the sentence for any other offense that is based in whole or in part on the factual allegations about which the person was seeking to influence a witness.
(e) Nothing in this section shall operate to impede the investigative activities of an attorney representing a defendant.
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