Penal Code § 281 PC is the California law that prohibits bigamy, which is when you marry one person while you are still married to someone else. It can be a misdemeanor or a felony carrying up to three years in prison.
The language of the statute reads that:
PC 281. (a) Every person having a spouse living, who marries or enters into a registered domestic partnership with any other person, except in the cases specified in Section 282, is guilty of bigamy.
(b) Upon a trial for bigamy, it is not necessary to prove either of the marriages or registered domestic partnerships by the register, certificate, or other record evidence thereof, but the marriages or registered domestic partnerships may be proved by evidence which is admissible to prove a marriage or registered domestic partnership in other cases; and when the second marriage or registered domestic partnership took place out of this state, proof of that fact, accompanied with proof of cohabitation thereafter in this state, is sufficient to sustain the charge.
Getting married while you are still married to someone else is all it takes to commit bigamy.
In order to help you better understand the crime of bigamy, our California criminal defense attorneys will address the following:
If, after reading this article, you would like more information, we invite you to contact us at Shouse Law Group.
1. What is bigamy?
The definition of bigamy in California under Penal Code 281 PC is:
- Marrying one person,
- While you have a husband or wife who is still living and to whom you are still married.1
That is all! It does not matter whether:
- You have tried to divorce your first spouse,
- You are separated from your first spouse,
- Your first marriage occurred in a different state or country, or
- Your first spouse is okay with you marrying someone else.
Exceptions
You are not guilty of bigamy in California if either:
- Your first marriage has been pronounced void, annulled, or dissolved by the judgment of a competent court; or
- Your first spouse has been absent for five successive years, and during that time you have not known for a fact that they are still alive;7 or
- You actually and reasonably believe that your first marriage has been dissolved.2
You are not guilty of bigamy if your first marriage has been dissolved by a court.
2. Penalties
California Penal Code 283 PC makes bigamy a “wobbler.” This means the prosecution has the discretion to charge it as a misdemeanor or a felony. Misdemeanor bigamy penalties carry:
- Misdemeanor (summary) probation;
- Up to 1 year in county jail; and/or
- A fine of up to $1,000.
Felony bigamy penalties carry:
- Felony (formal) probation;
- 16 months, 2 years or 3 years in state prison; and/or
- A fine of up to $10,000.3
Immigration Consequences
Bigamy is a crime of moral turpitude in California. This means you face deportation if:
- You are convicted of bigamy within five years of being admitted to the U.S.; or
- You are convicted of bigamy when you already have a conviction for another “crime involving moral turpitude” on your record.4
3. Defenses
Bigamy charges can seem clear-cut, but in fact many bigamy cases are complicated. As a defendant, you can turn this complication to your advantage because a jury may not convict you unless they are certain beyond a reasonable doubt that you are guilty.
In our experience, the strongest defense to California Penal Code 281 charges is that you reasonably believed your first marriage had been dissolved. A lot of bigamy cases we see arise out of misunderstandings, plain and simple. There is often an inter-cultural or international angle as well.
Typical evidence in bigamy cases include:
- Marriage certificates,
- Divorce certificates,
- Testimony of the first spouse, and/or
- The officiant of or witness to the prior wedding.
The prosecutor does not necessarily need a marriage certificate to prove that you are guilty of bigamy.
4. Related Offenses
Penal Code 285 – Incest
You commit incest in California (Penal Code 285 PC) if you marry or have sexual intercourse with your:
- Parent,
- Child,
- Grandparent,
- Grandchild,
- Sibling or half-sibling,
- Uncle or aunt, or
- Nephew or niece.
Incest is always a felony in California. The potential prison sentence is 16 months, two years or three years—the same as for felony bigamy.5
Penal Code 284 – Marrying the Wife or Husband of Another
California Penal Code 284 PC makes it a crime to marry a bigamist. Marrying the husband or wife of another is a felony, carrying the same prison sentence as bigamy.6
Legal References:
- Penal Code 281 PC – Bigamy. Penal Code 283 PC. People v. Vogel (1956) 46 Cal.2d 798.
- Penal Code 282 PC – Bigamy law exceptions.
- Penal Code 283 PC. See also Penal Code 672 PC. (“Upon a conviction for any crime punishable by imprisonment in any jail or prison, in relation to which no fine is herein prescribed, the court may impose a fine on the offender not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000) in cases of misdemeanors or ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in cases of felonies, in addition to the imprisonment prescribed.”)
- People v. Vogel (1956) 46 Cal.2d 798. Immigration & Nationality Act (“INA”) 237(a)(2)(A).
- Penal Code 285 PC – Incest. (“Persons being within the degrees of consanguinity within which marriages are declared by law to be incestuous and void, who intermarry with each other, or who being 14 years of age or older, commit fornication or adultery with each other, are punishable by imprisonment in the state prison.”). Family Code 2200 – Family relationship defined for California incest law. (“Marriages between parents and children, ancestors and descendants of every degree, and between brothers and sisters of the half as well as the whole blood, and between uncles and nieces or aunts and nephews, are incestuous, and void from the beginning, whether the relationship is legitimate or illegitimate.”)
- Penal Code 284 PC – Marrying the husband or wife of another. (“Every person who knowingly and willfully marries the husband or wife of another, in any case in which such husband or wife would be punishable under the provisions of this chapter, is punishable by fine not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.”). See also Penal Code 1170(h) PC.