Description of Offense

• Missouri Revised Statute Chapter 565 Section 130 defines the offense of false imprisonment. This law states that the offense has been committed when a person "knowingly restrains another unlawfully and without consent so as to interfere substantially with his liberty."
  
  

Governing Section of Law

• The Missouri statute of limitations law regarding false imprisonment is established in Chapter 516 of the Missouri Revised Statutes. Section 140 of this chapter restricts the time period during which a person can be sued after allegedly committing the offense of false imprisonment to two years.
  
  

Start of Limitation Clock

• Missouri statutes also put into place a method for determining when the clock starts for the purpose of determining the limitation period. Chapter 516 Section 100 declares that the clock starts not when the offense occurs, but when the damage resulting from the offense is sustained by the victim.
  
  

Standing in Court

• Chapter 516 Section 100 also establishes the rights of a person who has been falsely imprisoned to seek a civil legal remedy against the individual who committed the offense.