(a) As used in this section:

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class D felony2 to 12 yearsup to $5,000
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111
criminal case

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 39-13-110

  • Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
  • Civil forfeiture: The loss of ownership of property used to conduct illegal activity.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Minor: means any person under eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • 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
  • Property: means anything of value, including, but not limited to, money, real estate, tangible or intangible personal property, including anything severed from land, library material, contract rights, choses-in-action, interests in or claims to wealth, credit, admission or transportation tickets, captured or domestic animals, food and drink, electric or other power. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Services: includes labor, skill, professional service, transportation, telephone, mail, gas, electricity, steam, water, cable television, entertainment subscription service or other public services, accommodations in hotels, restaurants or elsewhere, admissions to exhibitions, use of vehicles or other movable property, and any other activity or product considered in the ordinary course of business to be a service, regardless of whether it is listed in this subdivision (a)(38) or a specific statute exists covering the same or similar conduct. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) “Facilitate” means raising, soliciting, collecting, or providing material support or resources with intent that such will be used, in whole or in part, to plan, prepare, carry out, or aid in any act of female genital mutilation or hindering the prosecution of an act of female genital mutilation or the concealment of an act of female genital mutilation;
(2) “Female genital mutilation,” “mutilate,” or “mutilation” means:

(A) The excision, infibulation or circumcision, in whole or in part, of the labia majora, labia minora, or clitoris of another;
(B) The narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal formed by cutting and repositioning the inner or outer labia, with or without the removal of the clitoris; or
(C) Any harmful procedure to the genitalia, including pricking, piercing, incising, scraping, or cauterizing; provided, however, that body piercing, pursuant to title 62, chapter 38, part 3, when performed on a consenting adult, is not female genital mutilation;
(3) “Hindering the prosecution of female genital mutilation” includes, but is not limited to, the following:

(A) Harboring or concealing a person who is known or believed by the facilitator to be planning to commit an act of female genital mutilation;
(B) Warning a person who is known or believed by the facilitator to be planning to commit an act of female genital mutilation of impending discovery or apprehension; or
(C) Suppressing any physical evidence that might aid in the discovery or apprehension of a person who is known or believed by the facilitator to be planning to commit an act of female genital mutilation; and
(4) “Material support or resources” means currency or other financial securities, financial services, instruments of value, lodging, training, false documentation or identification, medical equipment, computer equipment, software, facilities, personnel, transportation, and other physical assets.
(b) It is an offense for a person to:

(1) Knowingly mutilate a female;
(2) Knowingly facilitate the mutilation of a female; or
(3) Knowingly transport or facilitate the transportation of a female for the purpose of mutilation.
(c) A violation of subsection (b) is a Class D felony.
(d) It shall not be a defense to prosecution for a violation of subsection (b) that a female genital mutilation procedure is:

(1) Required as a matter of belief, custom, or ritual;
(2) Consented to by the minor on whom the procedure is performed; or
(3) Consented to by the parent or legal guardian of the minor on whom the procedure is performed.
(e) A procedure is not a violation of subsection (b) if the procedure is:

(1) Necessary to the physical health of the person on whom the procedure is performed;
(2) Performed on a person who is in labor or who has just given birth for medical purposes connected with that labor or birth; or
(3) Cosmetic rejuvenation and reconstruction in accordance with the standards of the American college of obstetrics and gynecology.
(f) Any physician, physician in training, certified nurse or midwife, or any other medical professional who performs, participates in, or facilitates a female genital mutilation procedure that does not fall under an exception listed in subsection (e) shall, in addition to the criminal penalties under this section, be subject to disciplinary action by the appropriate licensing board.
(g) Nothing in this section prohibits prosecution under any other law.
(h) All property, including money, used in the course of, intended for use in the course of, derived from, or realized through, conduct in violation of subsection (b) is subject to civil forfeiture in accordance with §§ 39-11-701 – 39-11-717.
(i)

(1) A victim of female genital mutilation may bring an action under this subsection (i) against a person or an entity who:

(A) Knowingly mutilated or attempted to mutilate the victim;
(B) Knowingly facilitated the victim’s mutilation; or
(C) Knowingly transported or facilitated the victim’s transportation outside of this state for the purpose of mutilation.
(2) In an action under this subsection (i), the court may award all of the following:

(A) Damages, including, but not limited to, damages or loss due to pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical impairment, physical disfigurement, loss of society and companionship, and loss of consortium;
(B) Two (2) times the amount of damages sustained; and
(C) Reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.
(3) If the victim is a minor whose legal guardian is alleged to have committed or facilitated the female genital mutilation, then a court may appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the minor.
(j) Any person or entity who knowingly commits an act of female genital mutilation, knowingly facilitates an act of female genital mutilation, or intentionally coerces, induces, or solicits a person who commits an act of female genital mutilation, shall be liable jointly and severally for all damages, attorney’s fees, and costs awarded under subsection (i).
(k)

(1) Notwithstanding § 28-3-104, a victim of female genital mutilation may commence an action under this section to recover damages sustained because of the female genital mutilation at any time prior to five (5) years after the commission of the act of female genital mutilation or, if the victim was a child at the time of the act, before the victim reaches twenty-one (21) years of age, whichever occurs later.
(2) If a criminal prosecution under this section proceeds against any person who committed the act of female genital mutilation, facilitated the actions of the person who committed the act of female genital mutilation, or coerced, induced, or solicited the person who committed the act of female genital mutilation, the running of the period shall be suspended during the pendency of such prosecution.
(l) A final judgment or decree rendered in favor of the state in any criminal proceeding under this section shall preclude the defendant from denying the essential facts established in that proceeding in any subsequent civil action pursuant to chapter 268 of the Public Acts of 2019.
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