Sextortion Law in Michigan: Sexual Extortion Under MCL 750.213b

"Sextortion" is the common name for threatening to release someone's intimate images unless that person pays money, sends more images, or does something else. In Michigan the offense is called sexual extortion. It is a felony under MCL 750.213b, which was added by 2024 PA 261 and took effect on April 2, 2025.^[1]

If you are being threatened, the person making the threats is the one to blame.^[5] If you are in danger, call 911. For a person under 18, reports can be made to the CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org or 1-800-843-5678, and Take It Down can help stop images from spreading.^[6][7] Michigan's VOICES4 hotline takes calls and texts at 855-864-2374, and RAINN's National Sexual Assault Hotline is 800-656-HOPE (4673).^[8][9]

This page explains what the statute prohibits, its penalty tiers, the related Michigan and federal laws, and where to report.

What does MCL 750.213b prohibit?

The statute applies to an individual who intentionally and maliciously threatens to release, exhibit, create, or distribute sexually explicit visual material of another individual, in order to compel or attempt to compel another individual to do any act or refrain from doing any act against the individual's will, with the intent to obtain sexually explicit visual material or anything else of value.^[1]

Taken apart, the text has four pieces:

• A threat that is intentional and malicious.^[1]
• What is threatened: to release, exhibit, create, or distribute sexually explicit visual material of another individual.^[1]
• The purpose of the threat: to compel or attempt to compel another individual to do or refrain from doing any act against that individual's will.^[1]
• The intent: to obtain sexually explicit visual material or anything else of value.^[1]

"Sexually explicit visual material" means a photograph or video that depicts nudity, erotic fondling, sexual intercourse, or sadomasochistic abuse.^[10] Because the list of threats includes a threat to "create" material, the statute's wording is not limited to images that already exist.^[1]

The phrase "anything else of value" means the statute covers demands for money as well as demands for more images.^[1]

Penalties

Situation	Classification	Maximum
First offense	Felony	5 years, a fine of up to $5,000, or both[2]
Second offense	Felony	10 years, a fine of up to $10,000, or both[2]
Third or subsequent offense	Felony	20 years, a fine of up to $20,000, or both[2]
Victim is under 18 or a vulnerable adult, and the individual who committed the violation is more than 18	Felony	25 years[3]
Victim suffers serious physical harm, serious mental harm, or death as a result	Felony	25 years[3]
Individual convicted is under 18	Misdemeanor	1 year; the court may order behavioral health counseling as part of the sentence[4]

The figures in the table are upper limits. How a sentence is set is explained in How sentencing guidelines work.

Terms used in the 25-year tier

• Serious mental harm means a mental injury that results in a substantial alteration of mental functioning that is manifested in a visibly demonstrable manner.^[10]
• Serious physical harm means a physical injury that threatens the life of a victim, causes substantial bodily disfigurement, or seriously impairs the functioning or well-being of the victim.^[10]
• Vulnerable adult has the meaning given in MCL 750.145m, which includes an individual age 18 or over who, because of age, developmental disability, mental illness, or physical disability requires supervision or personal care or lacks the personal and social skills required to live independently.^[10][11]

The age wording is exact: the 25-year tier applies where the person who committed the violation is "more than 18 years of age," and the misdemeanor tier applies where the individual convicted is "less than 18 years of age."^[3][4]

Related Michigan offenses

Sexual extortion can overlap with other crimes, each with its own elements.

Statute	What it covers	Maximum
Extortion, MCL 750.213	Maliciously threatening to accuse another of a crime, or threatening injury to the person or property of another or listed family members, with intent to extort money or any pecuniary advantage or to compel the person to do or refrain from doing any act against his will[12]	20 years or a fine of up to $10,000[12]
Nonconsensual dissemination, MCL 750.145e	Actually disseminating an adult's private sexually explicit image with intent to threaten, coerce, or intimidate[13]	93 days for a first violation[14]
Child sexually abusive activity, MCL 750.145c(2)	Persuading, inducing, enticing or coercing a person under 18 to engage in a listed sexual act to produce material[15][16]	20 years, or 25 years with a listed trigger[17][18]
Coercing a vulnerable adult to provide images, MCL 750.145h	Harassing, threatening, coercing or exploiting the vulnerability of a vulnerable adult in a manner that causes the adult to provide sexually explicit visual material[19]	1 year for a first offense; 2 years with a prior conviction[19]
Use of a computer, MCL 750.145d	Using the internet or a computer to communicate for the purpose of committing listed crimes against a minor or believed minor, including conduct under MCL 750.145c[20]	Tied to the underlying crime, up to 20 years[21]

MCL 750.213b took effect on April 2, 2025.^[1] The general extortion statute, by contrast, has been in the Penal Code in its present form since 1931.^[12] How any pre-2025 statute applies to a particular set of threats is a question for the prosecutor and the court.

See Sharing intimate images without consent, Child sexually abusive material, Using a computer to commit a crime and Deepfake intimate images.

Federal law

Several federal statutes have elements that can overlap with this conduct. Each has its own interstate-commerce or other federal element.

• Interstate extortion threats. Under 18 USC 875(d), transmitting in interstate or foreign commerce, with intent to extort money or other thing of value, a communication containing a threat to injure the property or reputation of the addressee or of another is punishable by a fine, up to two years in prison, or both.^[22]
• Threats to publish intimate images. Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, approved May 19, 2025, intentionally threatening to publish an authentic intimate visual depiction for the purpose of intimidation, coercion, extortion, or to create mental distress is punished like the publication offense: up to 2 years where an adult is depicted and up to 3 years where a minor is depicted.^[23][24][25] A threat involving a digital forgery carries up to 18 months for an adult and up to 30 months for a minor.^[24]
• Production involving a minor. Using, persuading, inducing, enticing, or coercing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct to produce a visual depiction carries not less than 15 and not more than 30 years in federal prison.^[26]
• Coercion and enticement of a minor. Using the mail or any facility or means of interstate or foreign commerce to knowingly persuade, induce, entice, or coerce a person under 18 to engage in sexual activity for which a person can be charged with a criminal offense is punishable by a fine and imprisonment for not less than 10 years or for life.^[27]

Under the federal dual-sovereignty doctrine, a state offense and a federal offense are not treated as the same offense for double jeopardy purposes when prosecuted by different sovereigns.^[28] See Federal child exploitation charges and Federal sex crimes overview.

Where a case can be brought

A threat can come from outside Michigan. A person may be prosecuted in Michigan for an offense committed while physically outside the state if, among other grounds, a victim resides in or is located in Michigan when the offense is committed, or the offense produces substantial and detrimental effects in Michigan.^[29]

Is sexual extortion a registrable offense?

The Tier I, Tier II and Tier III lists in the Sex Offenders Registration Act identify offenses by Penal Code section number, and as the text stood on October 4, 2026 none of the three lists names MCL 750.213b.^[30] Tier I also includes any other violation that by its nature constitutes a sexual offense against an individual who is a minor, and when a court sentences for an offense that is not on the lists it must determine whether the offense meets that description.^[30][31] See SORA tiers.

Reporting and getting help

• Emergency. If anyone is in immediate danger, including a risk of self-harm, call 911.
• Police. A report can be made to a local police department or sheriff. See Options for reporting.
• CyberTipline (victims under 18). The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children's CyberTipline takes reports of online exploitation of children; staff review each tip and work to make it available to the appropriate law enforcement agency.^[6]
• Michigan students. OK2SAY accepts confidential tips 24 hours a day at 855-565-2729, by text to 652729, or by email.^[32]
• Image removal. Take It Down is free and anonymous for images taken before age 18; StopNCII.org is a free tool for adults.^[7][33] Covered online platforms have a federal duty to remove a reported nonconsensual intimate image not later than 48 hours after a valid request.^[34] See Removing intimate images from the internet.

NCMEC's guidance to young people facing this kind of threat is that the blackmailer is to blame; to get help before deciding whether to pay or otherwise comply, because cooperating or paying rarely stops the blackmail; to report the account through the platform's safety feature; and to block the person but not delete the profile or messages.^[5]

Parents and teenagers can find more in Teen sexting and the law, and survivors' rights in a criminal case are covered in Rights of sexual assault survivors.

What people get wrong

"Sextortion is MCL 750.145g." That section is the 5-year mandatory minimum for a repeat child sexually abusive material offense. Sexual extortion is MCL 750.213b.^[35][1]

"It is only a crime if the image is actually shared." The offense is the threat, made for the stated purpose and with the stated intent.^[1]

"It is only about money." The intent element is to obtain sexually explicit visual material "or anything else of value."^[1]

"A minor who does this faces the same penalty as an adult." For an individual convicted who is under 18, the statute makes the offense a misdemeanor with a 1-year maximum and allows the court to order counseling.^[4]

"The person who sent the first picture is the one to blame." MCL 750.213b is directed at the individual who makes the threat.^[1] NCMEC's message to young people is that the blackmailer is to blame, even where the young person made a choice he or she regrets.^[5]