Is False Imprisonment a Felony? Unlawful Restraint, Detention, and Penalties by State (2026)

False imprisonment is the unlawful, intentional restraint of another person without legal authority and without that persons consent. It is graded as either a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the state and on the facts. In about half of U.S. jurisdictions the base offense is a felony (often a low-level felony carrying one to five years). In the rest it is a misdemeanor carrying up to one year. Aggravating factors, including use of a deadly weapon, risk of serious bodily injury, restraint of a child, extended duration, and restraint to facilitate another crime, almost always elevate the charge to a felony and frequently cross the line into kidnapping, which can carry decades or life.

False imprisonment is both a crime and a tort. As a crime, it is the intentional and unlawful confinement or restraint of another person so as to interfere substantially with that persons liberty. The restraint can be accomplished by physical force, by threats of force, by deception, or by barriers that a reasonable person would not feel free to disregard. The offense is complete the moment personal liberty is restrained; the duration of the detention is generally immaterial, though duration is a common sentencing factor. Consent is a defense, and lawful authority, such as a lawful arrest by a peace officer or reasonable parental discipline, is a complete defense. The Model Penal Code separates the offense into unlawful restraint (a misdemeanor) and kidnapping (a felony), and many states follow that structure.

These three terms overlap and are used inconsistently across state codes. Unlawful restraint (the Model Penal Code term) is the broad base offense: knowingly restraining another person without legal authority. False imprisonment is used in some codes as a synonym for unlawful restraint and in others as a slightly more serious variant. Kidnapping is the most serious and generally requires either that the offender moved the victim a substantial distance or that the restraint involved aggravating factors such as a risk of serious injury, ransom, facilitation of another felony, or terrorizing. The practical dividing line is aggravation and movement: a brief, non-violent confinement is false imprisonment or unlawful restraint, while confinement combined with movement, ransom, a weapon, or a child victim is typically kidnapping. Several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Virginia, do not maintain a separate false imprisonment offense and charge unlawful restraint as kidnapping or abduction.

The aggravating factors that elevate false imprisonment to a felony or to a higher-degree felony are consistent across jurisdictions. Use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument is the most serious non-homicide aggravator and typically raises the offense by one or two felony degrees. Exposing the victim to a substantial risk of serious bodily injury is treated the same way in most codes. Restraint of a child or minor is separately criminalized in many states and often carries a higher penalty than restraint of an adult; Florida treats false imprisonment of a child under 13 as a first-degree felony punishable by up to life. Extended duration, while not always a statutory element, is a common sentencing enhancement. Restraint for ransom, to facilitate another felony, to terrorize, or to inflict serious injury converts the offense into kidnapping.

The shopkeeper or merchant privilege is a widely recognized affirmative defense. A merchant, or an agent of a merchant, who has reasonable cause to believe that a person has stolen or attempted to steal merchandise may detain that person in a reasonable manner and for a reasonable time to investigate. This detention is not false imprisonment. The defense requires both reasonable belief and reasonable manner and duration; a detention that is violent, prolonged, or clearly unjustified will not qualify. Lawful authority is the other principal defense. A peace officer acting within the scope of lawful authority, a person executing a valid citizen arrest under state law, and a parent or guardian exercising reasonable discipline are all protected. A detention under an invalid warrant, or a warrant executed in an unlawful manner, may still constitute false imprisonment.

States that divide the offense into degrees typically follow a pattern: second-degree or simple unlawful restraint is a misdemeanor, and first-degree or aggravated unlawful restraint is a felony. New York, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kentucky, and Delaware all use this two-tier structure. States that use a single offense with sentencing enhancements, such as California, Colorado, and Texas, make the base offense a misdemeanor or low felony and add felony sentencing ranges for aggravation. A handful of states, including Florida, Iowa, Michigan, New Jersey, and Washington, grade even simple unlawful restraint as a felony. The highest grades, reserved for kidnapping and aggravated kidnapping, reach Class A or first-degree felonies with sentencing ranges of 10 years to life.

Under federal law, 18 U.S.C. § 1201 (kidnapping) makes it a felony to unlawfully seize, confine, kidnap, abduct, or carry away any person, with penalties up to 20 years and up to life or death when the victim dies. Federal false imprisonment is generally absorbed into the kidnapping statute. Federal jurisdiction attaches when the victim is transported in interstate or foreign commerce, when the offense occurs on federal property or in the special maritime or territorial jurisdiction of the United States, or when a federal officer is the victim. Indian country offenses are covered under the Major Crimes Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1153, and the Indian Child Welfare provisions. The military Uniform Code of Military Justice addresses unlawful restraint under Article 128 (assault) and Article 134 (general article).

A false imprisonment conviction, whether felony or misdemeanor, carries collateral consequences beyond incarceration. A felony conviction results in loss of civil rights in many states, including the right to vote (while incarcerated, and in some states post-release), the right to possess a firearm under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), and the right to serve on a jury. Immigration consequences can be severe: false imprisonment, especially with a weapon or against a child, may be an aggravated felony or a crime involving moral turpitude under federal immigration law, rendering a non-citizen deportable and inadmissible. Employment consequences include disqualification from jobs involving children, vulnerable adults, security clearances, and licensed professions. Registration as a sex offender is not automatic but may apply if the restraint was in furtherance of a sex offense. Housing consequences include denial of public housing under HUD guidelines for violent felonies.

Anyone charged with false imprisonment or unlawful restraint should retain a licensed criminal defense attorney immediately. The charge can be a felony even when the defendant believed the detention was lawful, and the line between false imprisonment and kidnapping is often the difference between a year in jail and decades in prison. An attorney can evaluate whether a defense, such as shopkeeper privilege, lawful arrest, consent, or parental authority, applies; can move to suppress evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment; and can negotiate reduction of the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor where state law permits. Do not make statements to law enforcement without counsel. Gather and preserve any evidence of the duration, manner, and basis of the detention, including surveillance footage and witness statements. This information is general and is not legal advice.