SUBPART F. OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT AND
CORRUPT PRACTICES
§134. Malfeasance in office
A. Malfeasance in office is committed when any public officer or public employee
shall:
(1) Intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, as such
officer or employee; or
(2) Intentionally perform any such duty in an unlawful manner; or
(3) Knowingly permit any other public officer or public employee, under his
authority, to intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, or to
perform any such duty in an unlawful manner; or
(4) Willfully and knowingly subject any person to the deprivation of any right,
privilege, or immunity secured or protected by the United States Constitution and laws, if
serious bodily injury or death results.
B. Any duty lawfully required of a public officer or public employee when delegated
by him to a public officer or public employee shall be deemed to be a lawful duty of such
public officer or employee. The delegation of such lawful duty shall not relieve the public
officer or employee of his lawful duty.
C.(1) Whoever commits the crime of malfeasance in office shall be imprisoned for
not more than five years with or without hard labor or shall be fined not more than five
thousand dollars, or both.
(2) In addition to the penalty provided for in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, a
person convicted of the provisions of this Section may be ordered to pay restitution to the
state if the state suffered a loss as a result of the offense. Restitution shall include the
payment of legal interest at the rate provided in R.S. 13:4202.
(3) If the individual convicted of the crime of malfeasance in office is a P.O.S.T.
certified full-time, part-time, or reserve peace officer, the P.O.S.T certification of that peace
officer shall be immediately revoked pursuant to R.S. 40:2405(J).
Amended by Acts 1980, No. 454, §1; Acts 2002, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 128, §6; Acts
2010, No. 811, §1, eff. Aug. 15, 2011; Acts 2016, No. 273, §1; Acts 2022, No. 668, §1, eff.
June 18, 2022.