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CITE

    18 USC Sec. 871                                             01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
    PART I - CRIMES
    CHAPTER 41 - EXTORTION AND THREATS

HEAD

    Sec. 871. Threats against President and successors to the
      Presidency

STATUTE

      (a) Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits for conveyance in
    the mail or for a delivery from any post office or by any letter
    carrier any letter, paper, writing, print, missive, or document
    containing any threat to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict
    bodily harm upon the President of the United States, the President-
    elect, the Vice President or other officer next in the order of
    succession to the office of President of the United States, or the
    Vice President-elect, or knowingly and willfully otherwise makes
    any such threat against the President, President-elect, Vice
    President or other officer next in the order of succession to the
    office of President, or Vice President-elect, shall be fined under
    this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
      (b) The terms "President-elect" and "Vice President-elect" as
    used in this section shall mean such persons as are the apparent
    successful candidates for the offices of President and Vice
    President, respectively, as ascertained from the results of the
    general elections held to determine the electors of President and
    Vice President in accordance with title 3, United States Code,
    sections 1 and 2. The phrase "other officer next in the order of
    succession to the office of President" as used in this section
    shall mean the person next in the order of succession to act as
    President in accordance with title 3, United States Code, sections
    19 and 20.

SOURCE

    (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 740; June 1, 1955, ch. 115, Sec.
    1, 69 Stat. 80; Pub. L. 87-829, Sec. 1, Oct. 15, 1962, 76 Stat.
    956; Pub. L. 97-297, Sec. 2, Oct. 12, 1982, 96 Stat. 1318; Pub. L.
    103-322, title XXXIII, Sec. 330016(1)(H), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat.
    2147.)

HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES

      Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Sec. 89 (Feb. 14, 1917, ch.
    64, 39 Stat. 919).
      Reference to persons causing or procuring was omitted as
    unnecessary in view of definition of "principal" in section 2 of
    this title.
      Minor changes were made in phraseology.
                                AMENDMENTS
      1994 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-322 substituted "fined under this
    title" for "fined not more than $1,000".
      1982 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 97-297 inserted ", to kidnap," after
    "containing any threat to take the life of".
      1962 - Pub. L. 87-829 designated existing provisions as subsec.
    (a), extended the provisions of such subsection to include any
    other officer next on the order of succession to the office of
    President and the Vice-President-elect, added subsec. (b), and
    substituted "and successors to the Presidency" for ", President-
    elect, and Vice President" in section catchline.
      1955 - Act June 1, 1955, included in section catchline and in
    text, provision for penalties for threats against the President-
    elect and the Vice President.
                       SHORT TITLE OF 2000 AMENDMENT
      Pub. L. 106-544, Sec. 1, Dec. 19, 2000, 114 Stat. 2715, provided
    that: "This Act [amending sections 879, 3056 and 3486 of this
    title, repealing section 3486A of this title, and enacting
    provisions set out as notes under section 3056 of this title,
    section 551 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, and
    section 566 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure] may be
    cited as the 'Presidential Threat Protection Act of 2000'."
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