{"id":375443,"date":"2018-01-30T11:38:44","date_gmt":"2018-01-30T16:38:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/state\/north-carolina-law\/north-carolina-kidnapping-laws.html"},"modified":"2018-01-30T11:49:17","modified_gmt":"2018-01-30T16:49:17","slug":"north-carolina-kidnapping-laws","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/state\/north-carolina-law\/north-carolina-kidnapping-laws.html","title":{"rendered":"North Carolina Kidnapping Laws"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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North Carolina Kidnapping Laws<\/h1>\n
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Created by FindLaw’s team<\/a> of legal writers and editors<\/i><\/p>\n\n | Last updated\n

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Amber alerts provide pivotal information on missing children; silver alerts are the equivalent notices for missing adults. North Carolina is one of a few states that maintain a clearinghouse for adults that have vanished, in addition to missing children. The North Carolina Center for Missing Persons<\/a>, the agency that issues the alerts, is an important resource for helping to locate people that have been kidnapped<\/a>. The state clearly makes catching kidnappers a priority and accordingly punishes perpetrators.<\/p>\n

Degrees of Kidnapping<\/h2>\n

If you illegally confine an individual under the age of 16 or remove the individual from one place to another without their consent or the consent of their parents, then you’ve committed kidnapping. If you release the individual to a safe place without any incident of serious injury or sexual assault<\/a>, then the charge is in the second degree. When you don’t release the individual in a safe place or serious injury or sexual assault occurs, then the offense is elevated to first degree kidnapping.<\/p>\n

North Carolina Kidnapping Laws at a Glance<\/h2>\n

The chart below provides a summary of statutes related to North Carolina’s kidnapping laws, including links to important code sections.<\/p>\n\n

Statutes and Elements of the Crime<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Penalties and Sentencing<\/b><\/p>\n

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North Carolina uses a complex sentencing formula; the actual sentence will depend on factors such as prior criminal history.<\/p>\n

First degree kidnapping<\/b><\/p>\n

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  • Victim was not released to a safe place or victim was seriously injured or sexually assaulted.<\/li>\n
  • Class C felony<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Second degree kidnapping<\/b><\/p>\n

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    • Victim released to a safe place; not seriously injured or sexually assaulted.<\/li>\n
    • Class E felony<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>

Possible Defenses<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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  • Consent<\/li>\n
  • Mistake<\/li>\n
  • Duress<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>

Related Offenses<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n