Extortion

Michael Dotson

Extortion is a criminal offense, which occurs when a person obtains money, behaviour, or other goods and/or services from another by wrongfully threatening or inflicting harm to his person, reputation, or property. Euphemistically, refraining from doing harm is sometimes called protection.

Blackmail is one kind of extortion -- specifically, extortion by threatening another's reputation with the disclosure of incriminating statements (true or false) about him. Even if it is not criminal to disclose the information, it constitutes extortion to demand money or other consideration not to disclose it. 

Extortion is distinguished from robbery. In robbery, the offender steals goods from the victim whilst threatening him with immediate force. In extortion, the victim willingly turns the goods over to avoid a threatened later violence or other harm.

The term extortion is often used metaphorically to refer to usury or to price-gouging, though neither is legally considered extortion. Some Libertarians and Objectivists have described taxation as a form of "extortion". The great increase in often-frivolous lawsuits in recent times has led to situations where some feel that others are abusing the legal system in their own extortion schemes, threatening to sue (for instance over alleged trademark infringement or defamation) in cases where the prospective defendant did no wrong, but feels compelled to settle and make a payment anyway to avoid expensive litigation.

The United States defines extortion as: The term "extortion" means the obtaining of property from another, with his consent, induced by wrongful use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear, or under color of official right.