(a) Any person who takes or destroys any valuable papers with intent to injure or defraud shall be punished as if for theft. If the value of the papers is not ascertainable, the offense is a Class A misdemeanor.

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class A misdemeanorup to 11 monthsup to $2,500
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 39-14-130

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • Force: means compulsion by the use of physical power or violence and shall be broadly construed to accomplish the purposes of this title. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Person: includes the singular and the plural and means and includes any individual, firm, partnership, copartnership, association, corporation, governmental subdivision or agency, or other organization or other legal entity, or any agent or servant thereof. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Writing: includes printing or any other method of recording information, money, coins, tokens, stamps, seals, credit cards, badges, trademarks, and symbols of value, right, privilege or identification. See Tennessee Code 39-14-114
(b) For the purposes of this section, “valuable papers” includes:

(1) Any bond, promissory note, bill of exchange, order, or certificate;
(2) Any book of accounts respecting goods, money or other things;
(3) Any deed or contract in force;
(4) Any receipt, release, or defeasant;
(5) Any instrument of writing whereby any demand, right or obligation is created, ascertained, increased, extinguished or diminished; or
(6) Any other valuable paper writing.