Tennessee § 40-11-318 - Bounty hunting.

§ 40-11-318. Bounty hunting.

“Bounty hunting” means a person who acts as an agent of a professional bondsman who attempts to or takes into custody a person who has failed to appear in court and whose bond has been forfeited, for a fee, the payment of which is contingent upon the taking of a person into custody and returning the person to the custody of the professional bondsman for whom the bounty hunter works; provided, that “bounty hunting” does not include the taking into custody of a person by a professional bondsman. No person who has been convicted of a felony shall serve as a bounty hunter in this state. Persons having been convicted of a felony who perform the services of a bounty hunter as defined in this section commit a criminal offense, punishable as a Class A misdemeanor. Before a bounty hunter takes into custody any person who has failed to appear in court, the bounty hunter shall comply with § 40-11-401, make a good faith effort to verify the person's address, and present to the office of the appropriate law enforcement officer of the political subdivision where the taking will occur: A certified copy of the underlying criminal process against the defendant; A certified copy of the bond or capias; Proper credentials from a professional bondsman in Tennessee verifying that the bounty hunter is an agent of a professional bondsman; and A pocket card, with identifying photo, certifying that the bounty hunter has completed the training required by § 40-11-401. Failure to present all of the proper credentials as specified in this section to the office of the appropriate law enforcement officer prior to taking any person into custody shall be punishable as a Class A misdemeanor. A professional bondsman, who knowingly employs a convicted felon to act as an agent of the bondsman for purposes of taking into custody a person who failed to appear in court, commits a Class A misdemeanor. Any resident of this state who is a United States citizen and who intends to perform the functions of a bounty hunter as defined in subsection (a), shall submit to a criminal history background check as provided by § 38-6-109 at the sheriff's office at the county of the person's permanent residence. The person requesting the criminal history background check shall be responsible for any fees associated with the background check. The criminal background check shall include fingerprint checks against state and federal criminal records maintained by the Tennessee bureau of investigation (TBI) and the federal bureau of investigation (FBI). The sheriff's office shall maintain files in their respective counties on bounty hunters requesting a criminal history background check. A sheriff may charge a fee of not more than two hundred dollars ($200) for each background check performed pursuant to this subsection (f) and in addition to the background check fees payable to the TBI, the FBI and any designated vendor. No bounty hunter shall wear, carry, or display any uniform, badge, shield, card, or other item with any printing, insignia, or emblem that purports to indicate or copies or resembles an item that indicates that such bounty hunter is an employee, officer, or agent of any local, state, or federal government or any political subdivision of any local, state, or federal government. Any time a bounty hunter is engaged in the functions of bounty hunting, the bounty hunter shall wear clothing that clearly identifies the person as a bounty hunter and prominently displays the words “bounty hunter”. Nothing in this section gives a bounty hunter legal defense or privilege to violate any traffic laws or criminal statutes. Acts 1998, ch. 1019, § 1; 2001, ch. 430, § 1; 2011, ch. 456, § 1; 2014, ch. 759, § 1; 2018, ch. 826, §§ 1-5; 2018, ch. 885, § 1. Amendments. The 2018 amendment by ch. 826 deleted “or another state” following “Tennessee” in (c)(3); in (c)(4), inserted “, with identifying photo,” and substituted “§ 40-11-401 ” for “ this section or, if the bounty hunter is from a state other than Tennessee, proof that the bounty hunter successfully completed an equivalent amount of training in the bounty hunter's home state within the last year” at the end; deleted the former last sentence in (f) which read: “If the bounty hunter is from a state other than Tennessee, proof that the bounty hunter has completed an equivalent criminal history background check in the person's home state within the last year shall be provided to the appropriate law enforcement agency of the political subdivision where the taking will occur.”; inserted “or copies or resembles an item that indicates” in (g); and added (h). The 2018 amendment by ch. 885 added the second sentence in (g). Effective Dates. Acts 2018, ch. 826, § 6. July 1, 2018. Acts 2018, ch. 885, § 2. July 1, 2018 at 12:01 a.m. Cross-References. Penalty for Class A misdemeanor, § 40-35-111 . Attorney General Opinions. Freelance bounty hunters must have a pocket card attesting to their training before they may take an individual into custody, OAG 03-018 (2/19/03).