Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

Tennessee theft lawyers understand that any theft charge is serious. Unlike most drug offenses or alcohol-related offenses, theft is considered to be a crime of dishonesty and of ill-moral turpitude. A conviction of any theft offense can be harmful for future employment purposes, negatively affect your standing in the community, and may include incarceration time. Employers are not likely to hire employees that they can’t trust, and many employers do background checks. The best way to minimize the unwanted affects for a conviction of any theft offense is to contact a Tennessee theft attorney as soon as you are charged with theft.

Under the old common law in Tennessee, there were numerous “stealing crimes.” Some names for these crimes include larceny, larceny by trick, false pretense, embezzlement, and so on. All of these crimes eventually got consolidated into the crime of “theft” in Tennessee. However, Tennessee retained the distinct nature of extortion. Extortion is very close to stealing since the offender is obtaining property that does not belong to him by illegal means. Under Tennessee law, a person commits extortion (a Class D felony)
who uses coercion upon another person with the intent to:

• Obtain property, services, any advantage or immunity; or
• Restrict unlawfully another's freedom of action.

It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for extortion that the person reasonably claimed:

• Appropriate restitution or appropriate indemnification for harm done; or
• Appropriate compensation for property or lawful services. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-14-112 (2007).

The word coercion is important in the legal definition of extortion. Coercion is what distinguishes extortion from theft. “Coercion" means a threat, however communicated, to:

• Commit any offense;
• Wrongfully accuse any person of any offense;
• Expose any person to hatred, contempt or ridicule;
• Harm the credit or business repute of any person; or
• Take or withhold action as a public servant or cause a public servant to take or withhold action. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-106 (2007).

The behavior that constitutes extortion can be “blackmail” among other things. The “appropriate restitution” defense to extortion encompasses situations that arise daily. For example, the harmed party in an automobile accident may threaten to sue the negligent party without being held criminally accountable for extortion. If you have been charged with extortion in Knoxville, Sevierville, Johnson City, Morristown, or Maryville, contact a Tennessee theft attorney.