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KidnappingFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against the person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority. This may be done for ransom or in furtherance of another crime, or in connection with a child custody dispute.
Kidnapping in English Common LawKidnapping is a common law offence requiring:
It would be difficult to kidnap without also committing false imprisonment, which is the common-law offence of intentionally or recklessly detaining the victim without lawful authority. The use of force to take and detain will also be regarded as an assault, and other, related offences may also be committed before, during, or after the detention. Alongside murder, kidnapping is the last significant offence under the common law which has yet to be codified into statute. Kidnapping versus abductionIn modern usage, kidnapping or abduction of a child is often called child stealing and parental kidnapping, particularly when done not to collect a ransom but rather with the intention of keeping the child permanently (often in a case where the child's parents are divorced or legally separated, whereupon the parent who does not have legal custody will commit the act, also known as "childnapping"). Today, the term is no longer restricted to the case of a child victim. Child abduction can refer to children being taken away without their parents' consent but with the consent of the child. In England and Wales, it is child abduction to take away a child under the age of 16 without parental consent. However the offense of kidnap in the case of a competent minor requires the absence of consent from the minor. This means that a parent commits kidnapping if he takes the child against its will but if a 3rd party takes the child away from the parents with the child's consent the 3rd party does not commit the offense of kidnapping[1] Kidnapping in the United StatesThe National Crime Information Center maintains a roster of missing persons, and groups them into categories. In 2008, there were 778,161 missing person reports logged on their system, of which 745,088 were eventually removed. Of those reported missing, 87,497 were listed as being in physical danger, and 20,562 were listed as being missing involuntarily.[2] Of the 589,761 juveniles reported missing in 2008, 13,046 were considered to have been in physical danger. Of those, 6,094 were considered to be missing involuntarily. Although the FBI does not maintain official statistics of the crime of kidnapping, presumably those known or suspected to have been kidnapped would fall under the "involuntary" category.[3] As the United States is estimated to have a population of about 304 million people[4], if 20,561 persons were reported kidnapped in 2008, it would amount to a kidnapping rate of 6.7 per 100,000 persons; as the United States is estimated to have a population of about 74 million persons under age 18[5], it would amount to a kidnapping rate among persons under 18 of 8.2 per 100,000. According to the National Crime Information Center:
The 814,967 figure merely represents the number of missing persons reported, regardless of whether they were later confirmed to have been kidnapped or abducted. Following the highly publicized 1932 Lindbergh kidnapping, Congress authorized the FBI to investigate kidnapping at a time when the Bureau was expanding in size and authority. The fact that a kidnapped victim may have been taken across state lines brings the crime within the ambit of federal criminal law. There are several deterrents to kidnapping in the United States of America. Among these are:
The harsh sentences imposed and the poor risk-to-benefit ratio compared with other crimes have caused kidnapping for ransom virtually to die out in the United States. One notorious failed example of kidnap for ransom was the Chowchilla bus kidnapping, in which 26 children were abducted with the intention of bringing in a $5 million ransom.[7] Kidnappings for profit that do occur in or into the United States today are often connected to other ongoing criminal activity, such as human trafficking.
According to a 2003 Domestic Violence Report in Colorado, out of a survey of 189 incidents, most people (usually white females) are taken from their homes or residence by a present or former spouse or significant other. They are usually taken by force, not by weapon, and usually the victims are not injured when they are freed. Named forms
Kidnapping todayKidnapping for ransom is a common occurrence in various parts of the world today, and certain cities and countries are often described as the "Kidnapping Capital of the World." As of 2007, that title belongs to Baghdad.[10] In 2004, it was Mexico,[11] and in 2001 it was Colombia.[12] Haiti also has frequent kidnappings (starting several years ago), as do certain parts of Africa.[citation needed] In the past, and presently in some parts of the world (such as southern Sudan), kidnapping is a common means used to obtain slaves and money through ransom. In less recent times, kidnapping in the form of shanghaiing (or "pressganging") men was used to supply merchant ships in the 19th century with sailors, whom the law considered unfree labour.[citation needed] Criminal gangs are estimated to make up to $500 million a year in ransom payments from kidnapping. [13] Kidnapping has been identified as one source by which terrorists organizations have been known to obtain funding. [14] The Perri, Lichtenwald and MacKenzie article identified Tiger kidnapping as a specific method used by a known terrorist organization, although which terrorist cell conducted the intelligence gathering, which terrorist cell made direct contact, and which terrorist cells shared in the profit prior to forwarding the monies obtained from the kidnapping up to the top organization members is not known for certain. See also
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