To secure a conviction for the base level or misdemeanor Second Degree offense, Penal Law 135.05, you must restrain another person. Per Penal Code section 237(a), false imprisonment is a misdemeanor if violence, deceit, fraud, or menace were not involved in the offense's commission.Accordingly, Defendant's Motion to Dismiss Count I as to the false imprisonment and false arrest claims is GRANTED. Accused of false imprisonment PC 236 in California? Contact our Orange County attorneys at Law Office of Michael L. Guisti and we can fight to defend you. The main difference between the two is that false arrest requires an arrest, but, false imprisonment only requires unlawful detention. California Penal Code § 236 PC defines false imprisonment as unlawfully restraining, detaining, or confining a person against his or her will. On the other hand, a defendant commits the tort of false arrest when they unlawfully arrest another person. To "appoint" or get a lawyer for you. Unlike in a criminal case, you have no absolute right to a free attorney in a civil case about prison abuse. This.