RCW 9A.72.150

Tampering with physical evidence.

Known as the Washington Criminal Code

The act spans §§ 9–9 (401 sections).

Applied in 8 court decisions — leading case 80 Wash. App. 592 - Henderson v. Tyrrell (1996)

Most recently applied in State Of Washington, V. Frank Edmund Walton (February 2024)

2011 c 336 s 397; 1975 1st ex.s. c 260 s 9A.72.150.

How often courts cite this section

citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

(1) A person is guilty of tampering with physical evidence if, having reason to believe that an official proceeding is pending or about to be instituted and acting without legal right or authority, he or she:

(a) Destroys, mutilates, conceals, removes, or alters physical evidence with intent to impair its appearance, character, or availability in such pending or prospective official proceeding; or

(b) Knowingly presents or offers any false physical evidence.

(2) "Physical evidence" as used in this section includes any article, object, document, record, or other thing of physical substance.

(3) Tampering with physical evidence is a gross misdemeanor.

Official source: Washington State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Washington statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.