Research - Legal Content (Cyrus S. Tabibnia) California Kidnapping Laws Penal Code Section 207-210 – California Kidnapping See, California Penal Code Sections 207 – 210 to learn about the laws of California Kidnapping. The California PC Sections 207, 208, 209, and 210 describe ‘kidnapping’ as the act of forcibly taking another individual against his/her will. Under the PC section 207, ‘abducting’ is the act of forcibly holding, taking or confining a person against his or her self-will. By instilling the fear and using the force, the Defendant moves the victim from one place to another. Under the PC Section 208, ‘kidnapping’ is punishable by detention in the state jail for about three, five, or eight years. Under the PC Section 209, any individual …show more content…
They used to follow her everywhere and even waited outside her office. This continued, until one day the defendants grabbed and forced Sandra into a van against her will. They taped her mouth and tied her up to stop her from screaming and running away. They drove Sandra to an abandoned house some 300 miles away from California and restricted her in a house basement. Both Alex and Michale is to be found guilty of quite a few crimes, including ‘conspiracy’ to do a kidnapping; ‘false imprisonment’; battery, penal code 242; and ‘assault PC 240’. Elements of Kidnapping According to CALCRIM 1215, if someone is guilty of abducting, the prosecutor must prove the elements below: • Defendant detained, held or kidnapped another individual using reasonable fear or force; • While committing such an act, the Defendant seized the other individual away to a substantial distance; • The other individual had no approval to the movement; and • The Defendant did not believe that the other individual approved to the movement. Legal Defenses to Kidnapping Charges There are a number of viable legal defenses to fight a charge of ‘abducting’ or ‘kidnapping’. Some of the most familiar ones are as