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5.4: Extortion

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    The crime of extortion is defined in section 518 of the California Penal Code.

    (a) Extortion is the obtaining of property or other consideration from another, with his or her consent, or the obtaining of an official act of a public officer, induced by a wrongful use of force or fear, or under color of official right.

    (b) For purposes of this chapter, “consideration” means anything of value, including sexual conduct as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 311.3, or an image of an intimate body part as defined in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (j) of Section 647.

    All states and the federal government criminalize extortion, which is also called blackmail. Extortion is typically nonviolent, but the elements of extortion are very similar to robbery, which is considered a forcible theft offense.40

    Extortion Act

    The criminal act element required for extortion is typically the theft of property accomplished by a threat to cause future harm to the victim, including the threat to inflict bodily injury, accuse anyone of committing a crime, or reveal a secret that would expose the victim to hatred, contempt, or ridicule. Note that some of these acts could be legal, as long as they are not performed with the unlawful intent to steal.

    Example of Extortion Act

    Rodney tells Lindsey that he will report her illegal drug trafficking to local law enforcement if she does not pay him fifteen thousand dollars. Rodney has probably committed the criminal act element required for extortion in most jurisdictions. Note that Rodney’s threat to expose Lindsey’s illegal activities is actually desirable behavior when performed with the intent to eliminate or reduce crime. However, under these circumstances, Rodney’s act is most likely criminal because it is supported by the intent to steal fifteen thousand dollars from Lindsey.41

    40California Penal Code (2024)

    41Storm (2012)

    This page titled 5.4: Extortion was last modified on Sat, 03 Oct 2026 18:49:41 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by George Cartwright.