2009 California Penal Code - Section 132-141 :: Chapter 6. Falsifying Evidence, And Bribing, Influencing, Intimidating Or Threatening Witnesses

132.  Every person who upon any trial, proceeding, inquiry, or
investigation whatever, authorized or permitted by law, offers in
evidence, as genuine or true, any book, paper, document, record, or
other instrument in writing, knowing the same to have been forged or
fraudulently altered or ante-dated, is guilty of felony.

132.5.  (a) A person who is a witness to an event or occurrence that
he or she knows, or reasonably should know, is a crime or who has
personal knowledge of facts that he or she knows, or reasonably
should know, may require that person to be called as a witness in a
criminal prosecution shall not accept or receive, directly or
indirectly, any payment or benefit in consideration for providing
information obtained as a result of witnessing the event or
occurrence or having personal knowledge of the facts.
   (b) A violation of this section is a misdemeanor and shall be
punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not exceeding six
months, by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by
both that imprisonment and fine.
   (c) Upon conviction under this section, in addition to the penalty
described in subdivision (b), any compensation received in violation
of this section shall be forfeited by the defendant and deposited in
the Victim Restitution Fund.
   (d) This section shall not apply if more than one year has elapsed
from the date of any criminal act related to the information that is
provided under subdivision (a) unless prosecution has commenced for
that criminal act. If prosecution has commenced, this section shall
remain applicable until the final judgment in the action.
   (e) This section shall not apply to any of the following
circumstances:
   (1) Lawful compensation paid to expert witnesses, investigators,
employees, or agents by a prosecutor, law enforcement agency, or an
attorney employed to represent a person in a criminal matter.
   (2) Lawful compensation provided to an informant by a prosecutor
or law enforcement agency.
   (3) Compensation paid to a publisher, editor, reporter, writer, or
other person connected with or employed by a newspaper, magazine, or
other publication or a television or radio news reporter or other
person connected with a television or radio station, for disclosing
information obtained in the ordinary course of business.
   (4) Statutorily authorized rewards offered by governmental
agencies for information leading to the arrest and conviction of
specified offenders.
   (5) Lawful compensation provided to a witness participating in the
Witness Protection Program established pursuant to Title 7.5
(commencing with Section 14020) of Part 4.
   (f) For purposes of this section, "information" does not include a
photograph, videotape, audiotape, or any other direct recording of
events or occurrences.

132.5.  (a) The Legislature supports and affirms the constitutional
right of every person to communicate on any subject. This section is
intended to preserve the right of every accused person to a fair
trial, the right of the people to due process of law, and the
integrity of judicial proceedings. This section is not intended to
prevent any person from disseminating any information or opinion.
   The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the disclosure for
valuable consideration of information relating to crimes by
prospective witnesses can cause the loss of credible evidence in
criminal trials and threatens to erode the reliability of verdicts.
   The Legislature further finds and declares that the disclosure for
valuable consideration of information relating to crimes by
prospective witnesses creates an appearance of injustice that is
destructive of public confidence.
   (b) A person who is a witness to an event or occurrence that he or
she knows is a crime or who has personal knowledge of facts that he
or she knows or reasonably should know may require that person to be
called as a witness in a criminal prosecution shall not accept or
receive, directly or indirectly, any money or its equivalent in
consideration for providing information obtained as a result of
witnessing the event or occurrence or having personal knowledge of
the facts.
   (c) Any person who is a witness to an event or occurrence that he
or she reasonably should know is a crime shall not accept or receive,
directly or indirectly, any money or its equivalent in consideration
for providing information obtained as a result of his or her
witnessing the event or occurrence.
   (d) The Attorney General or the district attorney of the county in
which an alleged violation of subdivision (c) occurs may institute a
civil proceeding. Where a final judgment is rendered in the civil
proceeding, the defendant shall be punished for the violation of
subdivision (c) by a fine equal to 150 percent of the amount received
or contracted for by the person.
   (e) A violation of subdivision (b) is a misdemeanor punishable by
imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months in a county jail, a
fine not exceeding three times the amount of compensation requested,
accepted, or received, or both the imprisonment and fine.
   (f) This section does not apply if more than one year has elapsed
from the date of any criminal act related to the information that is
provided under subdivision (b) or (c) unless prosecution has
commenced for that criminal act. If prosecution has commenced, this
section shall remain applicable until the final judgment in the
action.
   (g) This section does not apply to any of the following
circumstances:
   (1) Lawful compensation paid to expert witnesses, investigators,
employees, or agents by a prosecutor, law enforcement agency, or an
attorney employed to represent a person in a criminal matter.
   (2) Lawful compensation provided to an informant by a prosecutor
or law enforcement agency.
   (3) Compensation paid to a publisher, editor, reporter, writer, or
other person connected with or employed by a newspaper, magazine, or
other publication or a television or radio news reporter or other
person connected with a television or radio station, for disclosing
information obtained in the ordinary course of business.
   (4) Statutorily authorized rewards offered by governmental
agencies or private reward programs offered by victims of crimes for
information leading to the arrest and conviction of specified
offenders.
   (5) Lawful compensation provided to a witness participating in the
Witness Protection Program established pursuant to Title 7.5
(commencing with Section 14020) of Part 4.
   (h) For purposes of this section, "information" does not include a
photograph, videotape, audiotape, or any other direct recording of
an event or occurrence.
   (i) For purposes of this section, "victims of crimes" shall be
construed in a manner consistent with Section 28 of Article I of the
California Constitution, and shall include victims, as defined in
subdivision (3) of Section 136.

133.  Every person who practices any fraud or deceit, or knowingly
makes or exhibits any false statement, representation, token, or
writing, to any witness or person about to be called as a witness
upon any trial, proceeding, inquiry, or investigation whatever,
authorized by law, with intent to affect the testimony of such
witness, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

134.  Every person guilty of preparing any false or ante-dated book,
paper, record, instrument in writing, or other matter or thing, with
intent to produce it, or allow it to be produced for any fraudulent
or deceitful purpose, as genuine or true, upon any trial, proceeding,
or inquiry whatever, authorized by law, is guilty of felony.

135.  Every person who, knowing that any book, paper, record,
instrument in writing, or other matter or thing, is about to be
produced in evidence upon any trial, inquiry, or investigation
whatever, authorized by law, willfully destroys or conceals the same,
with intent thereby to prevent it from being produced, is guilty of
a misdemeanor.

135.5.  Any person who knowingly alters, tampers with, conceals, or
destroys relevant evidence in any disciplinary proceeding against a
public safety officer, for the purpose of harming that public safety
officer, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

136.  As used in this chapter:
   (1) "Malice" means an intent to vex, annoy, harm, or injure in any
way another person, or to thwart or interfere in any manner with the
orderly administration of justice.
   (2) "Witness" means any natural person, (i) having knowledge of
the existence or nonexistence of facts relating to any crime, or (ii)
whose declaration under oath is received or has been received as
evidence for any purpose, or (iii) who has reported any crime to any
peace officer, prosecutor, probation or parole officer, correctional
officer or judicial officer, or (iv) who has been served with a
subpoena issued under the authority of any court in the state, or of
any other state or of the United States, or (v) who would be believed
by any reasonable person to be an individual described in
subparagraphs (i) to (iv), inclusive.
   (3) "Victim" means any natural person with respect to whom there
is reason to believe that any crime as defined under the laws of this
state or any other state or of the United States is being or has
been perpetrated or attempted to be perpetrated.

136.1.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), any person who
does any of the following is guilty of a public offense and shall be
punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year
or in the state prison:
   (1) Knowingly and maliciously prevents or dissuades any witness or
victim from attending or giving testimony at any trial, proceeding,
or inquiry authorized by law.
   (2) Knowingly and maliciously attempts to prevent or dissuade any
witness or victim from attending or giving testimony at any trial,
proceeding, or inquiry authorized by law.
   (3) For purposes of this section, evidence that the defendant was
a family member who interceded in an effort to protect the witness or
victim shall create a presumption that the act was without malice.
   (b) Except as provided in subdivision (c), every person who
attempts to prevent or dissuade another person who has been the
victim of a crime or who is witness to a crime from doing any of the
following is guilty of a public offense and shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year or in the
state prison:
   (1) Making any report of that victimization to any peace officer
or state or local law enforcement officer or probation or parole or
correctional officer or prosecuting agency or to any judge.
   (2) Causing a complaint, indictment, information, probation or
parole violation to be sought and prosecuted, and assisting in the
prosecution thereof.
   (3) Arresting or causing or seeking the arrest of any person in
connection with that victimization.
   (c) Every person doing any of the acts described in subdivision
(a) or (b) knowingly and maliciously under any one or more of the
following circumstances, is guilty of a felony punishable by
imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years under
any of the following circumstances:
   (1) Where the act is accompanied by force or by an express or
implied threat of force or violence, upon a witness or victim or any
third person or the property of any victim, witness, or any third
person.
   (2) Where the act is in furtherance of a conspiracy.
   (3) Where the act is committed by any person who has been
convicted of any violation of this section, any predecessor law
hereto or any federal statute or statute of any other state which, if
the act prosecuted was committed in this state, would be a violation
of this section.
   (4) Where the act is committed by any person for pecuniary gain or
for any other consideration acting upon the request of any other
person. All parties to such a transaction are guilty of a felony.
   (d) Every person attempting the commission of any act described in
subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) is guilty of the offense attempted
without regard to success or failure of the attempt. The fact that no
person was injured physically, or in fact intimidated, shall be no
defense against any prosecution under this section.
   (e) Nothing in this section precludes the imposition of an
enhancement for great bodily injury where the injury inflicted is
significant or substantial.
   (f) The use of force during the commission of any offense
described in subdivision (c) shall be considered a circumstance in
aggravation of the crime in imposing a term of imprisonment under
subdivision (b) of Section 1170.

136.2.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), upon a good cause
belief that harm to, or intimidation or dissuasion of, a victim or
witness has occurred or is reasonably likely to occur, any court with
jurisdiction over a criminal matter may issue orders including, but
not limited to, the following:
   (1) Any order issued pursuant to Section 6320 of the Family Code.
   (2) An order that a defendant shall not violate any provision of
Section 136.1.
   (3) An order that a person before the court other than a
defendant, including, but not limited to, a subpoenaed witness or
other person entering the courtroom of the court, shall not violate
any provisions of Section 136.1.
   (4) An order that any person described in this section shall have
no communication whatsoever with any specified witness or any victim,
except through an attorney under any reasonable restrictions that
the court may impose.
   (5) An order calling for a hearing to determine if an order as
described in paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, should be issued.
   (6) An order that a particular law enforcement agency within the
jurisdiction of the court provide protection for a victim or a
witness, or both, or for immediate family members of a victim or a
witness who reside in the same household as the victim or witness or
within reasonable proximity of the victim's or witness' household, as
determined by the court. The order shall not be made without the
consent of the law enforcement agency except for limited and
specified periods of time and upon an express finding by the court of
a clear and present danger of harm to the victim or witness or
immediate family members of the victim or witness.
   For purposes of this paragraph, "immediate family members" include
the spouse, children, or parents of the victim or witness.
   (7) (A) Any order protecting victims of violent crime from all
contact by the defendant, or contact, with the intent to annoy,
harass, threaten, or commit acts of violence, by the defendant. The
court or its designee shall transmit orders made under this paragraph
to law enforcement personnel within one business day of the
issuance, modification, extension, or termination of the order,
pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 6380 of the Family Code. It is
the responsibility of the court to transmit the modification,
extension, or termination orders made under this paragraph to the
same agency that entered the original protective order into the
Domestic Violence Restraining Order System.
   (B) (i) If a court does not issue an order pursuant to
subparagraph (A) in a case in which the defendant is charged with a
crime of domestic violence as defined in Section 13700, the court on
its own motion shall consider issuing a protective order upon a good
cause belief that harm to, or intimidation or dissuasion of, a victim
or witness has occurred or is reasonably likely to occur, that
provides as follows:
   (I) The defendant shall not own, possess, purchase, receive, or
attempt to purchase or receive, a firearm while the protective order
is in effect.
   (II) The defendant shall relinquish any firearms that he or she
owns or possesses pursuant to Section 527.9 of the Code of Civil
Procedure.
   (ii) Every person who owns, possesses, purchases, or receives, or
attempts to purchase or receive, a firearm while this protective
order is in effect is punishable pursuant to subdivision (g) of
Section 12021.
   (C) Any order issued, modified, extended, or terminated by a court
pursuant to this paragraph shall be issued on forms adopted by the
Judicial Council of California and that have been approved by the
Department of Justice pursuant to subdivision (i) of Section 6380 of
the Family Code. However, the fact that an order issued by a court
pursuant to this section was not issued on forms adopted by the
Judicial Council and approved by the Department of Justice shall not,
in and of itself, make the order unenforceable.
   (b) Any person violating any order made pursuant to paragraphs (1)
to (7), inclusive, of subdivision (a) may be punished for any
substantive offense described in Section 136.1, or for a contempt of
the court making the order. A finding of contempt shall not be a bar
to prosecution for a violation of Section 136.1. However, any person
so held in contempt shall be entitled to credit for any punishment
imposed therein against any sentence imposed upon conviction of an
offense described in Section 136.1. Any conviction or acquittal for
any substantive offense under Section 136.1 shall be a bar to a
subsequent punishment for contempt arising out of the same act.
   (c) (1) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (e), an emergency
protective order issued pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with
Section 6250) of Part 3 of Division 10 of the Family Code or Section
646.91 of the Penal Code shall have precedence in enforcement over
any other restraining or protective order, provided the emergency
protective order meets all of the following requirements:
   (A) The emergency protective order is issued to protect one or
more individuals who are already protected persons under another
restraining or protective order.
   (B) The emergency protective order restrains the individual who is
the restrained person in the other restraining or protective order
specified in subparagraph (A).
   (C) The provisions of the emergency protective order are more
restrictive in relation to the restrained person than are the
provisions of the other restraining or protective order specified in
subparagraph (A).
   (2) An emergency protective order that meets the requirements of
paragraph (1) shall have precedence in enforcement over the
provisions of any other restraining or protective order only with
respect to those provisions of the emergency protective order that
are more restrictive in relation to the restrained person.
   (d) (1) A person subject to a protective order issued under this
section shall not own, possess, purchase, receive, or attempt to
purchase or receive a firearm while the protective order is in
effect.
   (2) The court shall order a person subject to a protective order
issued under this section to relinquish any firearms he or she owns
or possesses pursuant to Section 527.9 of the Code of Civil
Procedure.
   (3) Every person who owns, possesses, purchases or receives, or
attempts to purchase or receive a firearm while the protective order
is in effect is punishable pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section
12021 of the Penal Code.
   (e) (1) In all cases where the defendant is charged with a crime
of domestic violence, as defined in Section 13700, the court shall
consider issuing the above-described orders on its own motion. All
interested parties shall receive a copy of those orders. In order to
facilitate this, the court's records of all criminal cases involving
domestic violence shall be marked to clearly alert the court to this
issue.
   (2) In those cases in which a complaint, information, or
indictment charging a crime of domestic violence, as defined in
Section 13700, has been issued, a restraining order or protective
order against the defendant issued by the criminal court in that case
has precedence in enforcement over any civil court order against the
defendant, unless a court issues an emergency protective order
pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 6250) of Part 3 of
Division 10 of the Family Code or Section 646.91 of the Penal Code,
in which case the emergency protective order shall have precedence in
enforcement over any other restraining or protective order, provided
the emergency protective order meets the following requirements:
   (A) The emergency protective order is issued to protect one or
more individuals who are already protected persons under another
restraining or protective order.
   (B) The emergency protective order restrains the individual who is
the restrained person in the other restraining or protective order
specified in subparagraph (A).
   (C) The provisions of the emergency protective order are more
restrictive in relation to the restrained person than are the
provisions of the other restraining or protective order specified in
subparagraph (A).
   (3) Custody and visitation with respect to the defendant and his
or her minor children may be ordered by a family or juvenile court
consistent with the protocol established pursuant to subdivision (f),
but if ordered after a criminal protective order has been issued
pursuant to this section, the custody and visitation order shall make
reference to, and acknowledge the precedence of enforcement of, any
appropriate criminal protective order. On or before July 1, 2006, the
Judicial Council shall modify the criminal and civil court forms
consistent with this subdivision.
   (f) On or before January 1, 2003, the Judicial Council shall
promulgate a protocol, for adoption by each local court in
substantially similar terms, to provide for the timely coordination
of all orders against the same defendant and in favor of the same
named victim or victims. The protocol shall include, but shall not be
limited to, mechanisms for assuring appropriate communication and
information sharing between criminal, family, and juvenile courts
concerning orders and cases that involve the same parties, and shall
permit a family or juvenile court order to coexist with a criminal
court protective order subject to the following conditions:
   (1) Any order that permits contact between the restrained person
and his or her children shall provide for the safe exchange of the
children and shall not contain language either printed or handwritten
that violates a "no contact order" issued by a criminal court.
   (2) Safety of all parties shall be the courts' paramount concern.
The family or juvenile court shall specify the time, day, place, and
manner of transfer of the child, as provided in Section 3100 of the
Family Code.
   (g) On or before January 1, 2003, the Judicial Council shall
modify the criminal and civil court protective order forms consistent
with this section.
   (h) In any case in which a complaint, information, or indictment
charging a crime of domestic violence, as defined in Section 13700,
has been filed, the court may consider, in determining whether good
cause exists to issue an order under paragraph (1) of subdivision
(a), the underlying nature of the offense charged, and the
information provided to the court pursuant to Section 273.75.

136.3.  (a) The court shall order that any party enjoined pursuant
to Section 136.2 be prohibited from taking any action to obtain the
address or location of a protected party or a protected party's
family members, caretakers, or guardian, unless there is good cause
not to make that order.
   (b) The Judicial Council shall promulgate forms necessary to
effectuate this section.

136.5.  Any person who has upon his person a deadly weapon with the
intent to use such weapon to commit a violation of Section 136.1 is
guilty of an offense punishable by imprisonment in the county jail
for not more than one year, or in the state prison.

136.7.  Every person imprisoned in a county jail or the state prison
who has been convicted of a sexual offense, including, but not
limited to, a violation of Section 243.4, 261, 261.5, 262, 264.1,
266, 266a, 266b, 266c, 266f, 285, 286, 288, 288a, or 289, who
knowingly reveals the name and address of any witness or victim to
that offense to any other prisoner with the intent that the other
prisoner will intimidate or harass the witness or victim through the
initiation of unauthorized correspondence with the witness or victim,
is guilty of a public offense, punishable by imprisonment in the
county jail not to exceed one year, or by imprisonment in the state
prison.
   Nothing in this section shall prevent the interviewing of
witnesses.

137.  (a) Every person who gives or offers, or promises to give, to
any witness, person about to be called as a witness, or person about
to give material information pertaining to a crime to a law
enforcement official, any bribe, upon any understanding or agreement
that the testimony of such witness or information given by such
person shall be thereby influenced is guilty of a felony.
   (b) Every person who attempts by force or threat of force or by
the use of fraud to induce any person to give false testimony or
withhold true testimony or to give false material information
pertaining to a crime to, or withhold true material information
pertaining to a crime from, a law enforcement official is guilty of a
felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for two,
three, or four years.
   As used in this subdivision, "threat of force" means a credible
threat of unlawful injury to any person or damage to the property of
another which is communicated to a person for the purpose of inducing
him to give false testimony or withhold true testimony or to give
false material information pertaining to a crime to, or to withhold
true material information pertaining to a crime from, a law
enforcement official.
   (c) Every person who knowingly induces another person to give
false testimony or withhold true testimony not privileged by law or
to give false material information pertaining to a crime to, or to
withhold true material information pertaining to a crime from, a law
enforcement official is guilty of a misdemeanor.
   (d) At the arraignment, on a showing of cause to believe this
section may be violated, the court, on motion of a party, shall
admonish the person who there is cause to believe may violate this
section and shall announce the penalties and other provisions of this
section.
   (e) As used in this section "law enforcement official" includes
any district attorney, deputy district attorney, city attorney,
deputy city attorney, the Attorney General or any deputy attorney
general, or any peace officer included in Chapter 4.5 (commencing
with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2.
   (f) The provisions of subdivision (c) shall not apply to an
attorney advising a client or to a person advising a member of his or
her family.

138.  (a) Every person who gives or offers or promises to give to
any witness or person about to be called as a witness, any bribe upon
any understanding or agreement that the person shall not attend upon
any trial or other judicial proceeding, or every person who attempts
by means of any offer of a bribe to dissuade any person from
attending upon any trial or other judicial proceeding, is guilty of a
felony.
   (b) Every person who is a witness, or is about to be called as
such, who receives, or offers to receive, any bribe, upon any
understanding that his or her testimony shall be influenced thereby,
or that he or she will absent himself or herself from the trial or
proceeding upon which his or her testimony is required, is guilty of
a felony.

139.  (a) Except as provided in Sections 71 and 136.1, any person
who has been convicted of any felony offense specified in Section
12021.1 who willfully and maliciously communicates to a witness to,
or a victim of, the crime for which the person was convicted, a
credible threat to use force or violence upon that person or that
person's immediate family, shall be punished by imprisonment in the
county jail not exceeding one year or by imprisonment in the state
prison for two, three, or four years.
   (b) Any person who is convicted of violating subdivision (a) who
subsequently is convicted of making a credible threat, as defined in
subdivision (c), which constitutes a threat against the life of, or a
threat to cause great bodily injury to, a person described in
subdivision (a), shall be sentenced to consecutive terms of
imprisonment as prescribed in Section 1170.13.
   (c) As used in this section, "a credible threat" is a threat made
with the intent and the apparent ability to carry out the threat so
as to cause the target of the threat to reasonably fear for his or
her safety or the safety of his or her immediate family.
   (d) The present incarceration of the person making the threat
shall not be a bar to prosecution under this section.
   (e) As used in this section, "malice," "witness," and "victim"
have the meanings given in Section 136.

140.  (a) Except as provided in Section 139, every person who
willfully uses force or threatens to use force or violence upon the
person of a witness to, or a victim of, a crime or any other person,
or to take, damage, or destroy any property of any witness, victim,
or any other person, because the witness, victim, or other person has
provided any assistance or information to a law enforcement officer,
or to a public prosecutor in a criminal proceeding or juvenile court
proceeding, shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail not
exceeding one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison for two,
three, or four years.
   (b) A person who is punished under another provision of law for an
act described in subdivision (a) shall not receive an additional
term of imprisonment under this section.

141.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), any person who
knowingly, willfully, and intentionally alters, modifies, plants,
places, manufactures, conceals, or moves any physical matter, with
specific intent that the action will result in a person being charged
with a crime or with the specific intent that the physical matter
will be wrongfully produced as genuine or true upon any trial,
proceeding, or inquiry whatever, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
   (b) Any peace officer who knowingly, willfully, and intentionally
alters, modifies, plants, places, manufactures, conceals, or moves
any physical matter, with specific intent that the action will result
in a person being charged with a crime or with the specific intent
that the physical matter will be wrongfully produced as genuine or
true upon any trial, proceeding, or inquiry whatever, is guilty of a
felony punishable by two, three, or five years in the state prison.
   (c) Nothing in this section shall preclude prosecution under both
this section and any other provision of law.