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CITE

    18 USC Sec. 2237                                            01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
    PART I - CRIMES
    CHAPTER 109 - SEARCHES AND SEIZURES

HEAD

    Sec. 2237. Criminal sanctions for failure to heave to, obstruction
      of boarding, or providing false information

STATUTE

      (a)(1) It shall be unlawful for the master, operator, or person
    in charge of a vessel of the United States, or a vessel subject to
    the jurisdiction of the United States, to knowingly fail to obey an
    order by an authorized Federal law enforcement officer to heave to
    that vessel.
      (2) It shall be unlawful for any person on board a vessel of the
    United States, or a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the
    United States, to -
        (A) forcibly resist, oppose, prevent, impede, intimidate, or
      interfere with a boarding or other law enforcement action
      authorized by any Federal law or to resist a lawful arrest; or
        (B) provide materially false information to a Federal law
      enforcement officer during a boarding of a vessel regarding the
      vessel's destination, origin, ownership, registration,
      nationality, cargo, or crew.
      (b) Any person who intentionally violates this section shall be
    fined under this title or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or
    both.
      (c) This section does not limit the authority of a customs
    officer under section 581 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
    1581), or any other provision of law enforced or administered by
    the Secretary of the Treasury or the Secretary of Homeland
    Security, or the authority of any Federal law enforcement officer
    under any law of the United States, to order a vessel to stop or
    heave to.
      (d) A foreign nation may consent or waive objection to the
    enforcement of United States law by the United States under this
    section by radio, telephone, or similar oral or electronic means.
    Consent or waiver may be proven by certification of the Secretary
    of State or the designee of the Secretary of State.
      (e) In this section -
        (1) the term "Federal law enforcement officer" has the meaning
      given the term in section 115(c);
        (2) the term "heave to" means to cause a vessel to slow, come
      to a stop, or adjust its course or speed to account for the
      weather conditions and sea state to facilitate a law enforcement
      boarding;
        (3) the term "vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United
      States" has the meaning given the term in section 2 (!1) of the
      Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (46 U.S.C. App. 1903); and
        (4) the term "vessel of the United States" has the meaning
      given the term in section 2 (!1) of the Maritime Drug Law
      Enforcement Act (46 U.S.C. App. 1903).

SOURCE

    (Added Pub. L. 109-177, title III, Sec. 303(a), Mar. 9, 2006, 120
    Stat. 233.)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

      Section 2 of the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act, referred to
    in subsec. (e)(3), (4), probably means section 3 of the Maritime
    Drug Law Enforcement Act, Pub. L. 96-350, which was classified to
    section 1903 of former Title 46, Appendix, Shipping, and was
    repealed and restated in sections 70502 to 70506 of Title 46,
    Shipping, by Pub. L. 109-304, Secs. 10(2), 19, Oct. 6, 2006, 120
    Stat. 1683, 1710. The terms "vessel of the United States" and
    "vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States" are
    defined in subsecs. (b) and (c), respectively, of section 70502 of
    Title 46.

FOOTNOTE

    (!1) See References in Text note below.