Witness Tampering

The federal government takes very seriously the offense of interfering with witnesses who will be subpoenaed to testify in a trial. If you try to prevent a witness from testifying, you can be indicted for witness tampering — and face years in a federal prison.

Witness Tampering

In the US, it is illegal to intimidate a witness or interfere with their cooperation or testimony. You can be arrested for an attempt to tamper with a witness as well as actually preventing them from testifying.

Witness tampering includes:

• Bribing a witness
• Threatening them with violence if they testify
• Threatening to harm their family if they testify
• Threatening to destroy their home or belongings if they testify
• Threatening a witness’s family
• Preventing a witness from appearing at a court proceeding
• Persuading a witness to change their testimony

If you are convicted of threatening a witness with physical force, you can face up to 10 years in a federal prison. You face up to 20 years if you actually did use or attempt to use physical force.

How A Philadelphia Federal Crimes Lawyer Will Help

When you are up against a witness tampering charge, you will be facing inflexible laws and a determined US prosecutor. You will need a Philadelphia federal crimes lawyer who can help you determine all of your options and achieve the best outcome for your circumstances.

United States Code

Read more about federal criminal offenses in the United States Code.