Terrorizing

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The following is not legal advice but is for information only. Legal advice is when an attorney applies the law to a person's individual circumstances and advises them on their legal options or potential exposure to legal harm, which a web page clearly does not.

 

Terrorizing in Maine means communicating a threat to commit a crime of violence dangerous to human life to another person where the natural consequence is to make them fear for their safety or the safety of others. It involves using words, gestures, or actions to create a sense of fear or terror in the person targeted by the threat. However, this statute does not include an intent element and a recent case at the United States Supreme Court makes that statute problematic.

 

In any event, the seriousness of the offense depends on the result.

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It is a class D misdemeanor if the consequence by the person making the threat is to place the person threatened in reasonable fear that the threatened crime will actually be committed. in other words, the government needs to prove actual fear, that the fear is reasonable, and that the threat will be carried out. A class D misdemeanor carries the potential for a maximum term of imprisonment of 364 days in prison (if longer than nine months) and a maximum fine of $2,000. There is no mandatory minimum sentence for this offense.

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Terrorizing can also be charged as a domestic violence offense. This does not affect the class of crime, but will affect how it will be charged based on future offenses of domestic violence.

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It is a class C felony if the threat causes a building to be evacuated or for people to be forced to remain in a secure area . That consequence has to be a natural and probable consequence of the threat. A class C felony carries the potential for a maximum term of imprisonment of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $5,000. There is no mandatory minimum sentence for this offense.