Whoever, without lawful authority, forcibly or secretly confines, or imprisons another person within this Commonwealth against his will shall be punished. In order to establish a defendant's guilt on this charge, the Commonwealth must prove each of the following four elements beyond a reasonable doubt.
- First Element: That a defendant was without lawful authority.
- The first element the Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt is that a defendant was acting without lawful authority. An act taken under lawful authority means that it was authorized, sanctioned or allowed by law. An act is taken without lawful authority if it is not authorized by law.
- Second Element: That a defendant forcibly or secretly confined or imprisoned another person against their will.
- The second element the Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt is that a defendant forcibly or secretly confined or imprisoned the victim in Massachusetts. The word "forcibly" means carried out through the use of force. One acts "forcibly" toward another if one compels, constrains or obliges them to do something against their will. Force may be either actual or constructive, so there need not be actual physical force applied against the alleged victim; it is sufficient that the alleged victim is subdued by a display of potential force. "Secretly" means to do something without the knowledge of others. "Confine" means to enclose within bounds or limit, to restrict, to shut up or keep in. "Imprison" means to detain in custody or to hold in restraint. Any restraint of a person's liberty is a confinement or an imprisonment.
- Third Element: That a defendant committed the offense against the other person's will.
- The third element the Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt is that a defendant committed the offense against the person's will. "Against their will" means that the alleged victim did not consent to be seized, confined, imprisoned, carried, sent, inveigled or kidnapped by a defendant. A person's submitting because of fear is not consent.
- Fouth Element: Intent to extort money or some other valuable thing.
- The fourth element the Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt is that a defendant committed the offense of kidnapping, as described above, with the specific intent to extort money or some other valuable thing.
Intent refers to a person's objective or purpose. Specific intent, which is required in this case, is the act of concentrating or focusing the mind for some perceptible period. It is a conscious act, with the determination of the mind to do an act. It is contemplation rather than reflex, and it must precede that act. The Commonwealth must prove specific intent on the part of a defendant; this requires you to make a decision about a defendant's state of mind at the time of the crime. In this case, you may or may not infer a defendant's intent by considering all of the facts, as well as evidence, of defendant's conduct offered during the trial. To `extort" means to obtain property, coerce payment of money, secure a pecuniary advantage for oneself, or compel another to do an act against his or her will as a result of a threat. "The emphasis in the crime of extortion is on the wrongful use of fear to compel the alleged victim to surrender something of value to the extortionist."