A person generally commits the criminal offense of kidnapping by using force or other means of instilling fear to steal, take, hold, detain, abduct, or arrest a person and take them to another location. A person of any age may be a victim of kidnapping.

And a person generally commits the criminal offense of aggravated kidnapping if the person (1) uses force, fear, or fraud upon a victim who is a child under 14 years of age; (2) accompanies the kidnapping with a demand for ransom; (3) causes the victim to suffer serious bodily injury or death; (4) kidnaps a person during a carjacking; (5) uses the victim as a shield or hostage; or (6) exhibits or uses a deadly weapon during the course of the kidnapping.

Kidnapping laws vary from state to state, including definitions and affirmative defenses, such as whether the person taken is related to the kidnapper. Some states have child abduction laws that apply to the abduction of children by parents or relatives when the child is not moved a significant distance (out of county or state). Kidnapping laws are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Delaware, kidnapping is defined under Title 11, Section 783 of the Delaware Code. The offense occurs when a person unlawfully restrains another person with the intent to: hold the victim for ransom or reward; use the victim as a shield or hostage; facilitate the commission of a felony or flight thereafter; inflict physical injury upon the victim or violate or abuse the victim sexually; terrorize the victim or a third person; or interfere with the performance of any governmental or political function. Kidnapping is a Class B felony in Delaware. Aggravated kidnapping, which involves circumstances such as the victim being under 14 years of age, the kidnapper being armed with a deadly weapon, or the victim suffering bodily injury, is considered a more serious offense and is classified as a Class A felony under Section 783A of the Delaware Code. Delaware law also addresses the unlawful taking or restraint of a child by a parent or relative under certain circumstances, which can be found in Title 11, Chapter 5 of the Delaware Code. These statutes outline the legal framework for kidnapping and related offenses in the state of Delaware.