19 U.S.C. § 1594 — Seizure of conveyances

Page 288 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1594 (2) If a party that has been certified as a par- ticipant in the drawback compliance program under subsection (e) commits an alleged viola- tion which was not repetitive, the party shall be issued a ‘‘warning letter’’, and, for any subse- quent violation, shall be subject to the same maximum penalty amounts stated in paragraph (1). (h) Regulation The Secretary shall promulgate regulations and guidelines to implement this section. Such regulations shall specify that for purposes of subsections (c) and (g), a repeat negligent viola- tion involving the same issue shall be treated as a repetitive violation for a maximum period of 3 years. (i) Court of International Trade proceedings Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in any proceeding commenced by the United States in the Court of International Trade for the re- covery of any monetary penalty claimed under this section— (1) all issues, including the amount of the penalty, shall be tried de novo; (2) if the monetary penalty is based on fraud, the United States shall have the burden of proof to establish the alleged violation by clear and convincing evidence; and (3) if the monetary penalty is based on neg- ligence, the United States shall have the bur- den of proof to establish the act or omission constituting the violation, and the alleged vio- lator shall have the burden of providing evi- dence that the act or omission did not occur as a result of negligence. (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 593A, as added Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 622(a), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2181; amended Pub. L. 108–429, title I, § 1563(f), Dec. 3, 2004, 118 Stat. 2587.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2004—Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 108–429 substituted ‘‘sub- sections (c) and (g)’’ for ‘‘subsection (g)’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2004 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 108–429 effective Dec. 3, 2004, and applicable to drawback entries filed on or after Dec. 3, 2004, and to those filed before Dec. 3, 2004, if liq- uidation of the drawback entry is not final on Dec. 3, 2004, see section 1563(g)(1) of Pub. L. 108–429, set out as a note under section 1313 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 622(b), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2186, which provided that the enactment of this section would apply to drawback claims filed on and after the nationwide operational implementation of an auto- mated drawback selectivity program by the Customs Service, was repealed by Pub. L. 116–113, title VI, § 601, Jan. 29, 2020, 134 Stat. 78, effective on the date the USMCA entered into force (July 1, 2020). TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of functions, personnel, assets, and li- abilities of the United States Customs Service of the Department of the Treasury, including functions of the Secretary of the Treasury relating thereto, to the Sec- retary of Homeland Security, and for treatment of re- lated references, see sections 203(1), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of Novem- ber 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6. For establishment of U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the Department of Homeland Se- curity, treated as if included in Pub. L. 107–296 as of Nov. 25, 2002, see section 211 of Title 6, as amended gen- erally by Pub. L. 114–125, and section 802(b) of Pub. L. 114–125, set out as a note under section 211 of Title 6. § 1594. Seizure of conveyances (a) In general Whenever— (1) any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft; or (2) the owner or operator, or the master, pilot, conductor, driver, or other person in charge of a vessel, vehicle, or aircraft; is subject to a penalty for violation of the cus- toms laws, the conveyance involved shall be held for the payment of such penalty and may be seized and forfeited and sold in accordance with the customs laws. The proceeds of sale, if any, in excess of the assessed penalty and expenses of seizing, maintaining, and selling the property shall be held for the account of any interested party. (b) Exceptions (1) No conveyance used by any person as a common carrier in the transaction of business as a common carrier is subject to seizure and forfeiture under the customs laws for violations relating to merchandise contained— (A) on the person; (B) in baggage belonging to and accom- panying a passenger being lawfully trans- ported on such conveyance; or (C) in the cargo of the conveyance if the cargo is listed on the manifest and marks, numbers, weights and quantities of the outer packages or containers agree with the mani- fest; unless the owner or operator, or the master, pilot, conductor, driver or other person in charge participated in, or had knowledge of, the violation, or was grossly negligent in preventing or discovering the violation. (2) Except as provided in paragraph (1) or sub- section (c), no vessel, vehicle, or aircraft is sub- ject to forfeiture to the extent of an interest of an owner for a drug-related offense established by that owner to have been committed or omit- ted without the knowledge, consent, or willful blindness of the owner. (c) Prohibited merchandise on conveyance If any merchandise the importation of which is prohibited is found to be, or to have been— (1) on board a conveyance used as a common carrier in the transaction of business as a common carrier in one or more packages or containers— (A) that are not manifested (or not shown on bills of lading or airway bills); or (B) whose marks, numbers, weight or quantities disagree with the manifest (or with the bills of lading or airway bills); or (2) concealed in or on such a conveyance, but not in the cargo; Page 289 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1595 the conveyance may be seized, and after inves- tigation, forfeited unless it is established that neither the owner or operator, master, pilot, nor any other employee responsible for maintaining and insuring the accuracy of the cargo manifest knew, or by the exercise of the highest degree of care and diligence could have known, that such merchandise was on board. (d) Definitions For purposes of this section— (1) The term ‘‘owner or operator’’ includes— (A) a lessee or person operating a convey- ance under a rental agreement or charter party; and (B) the officers and directors of a corpora- tion; (C) station managers and similar super- visory ground personnel employed by air- lines; (D) one or more partners of a partnership; (E) representatives of the owner or oper- ator in charge of the passenger or cargo op- erations at a particular location; and (F) and other persons with similar respon- sibilities. (2) The term ‘‘master’’ and similar terms re- lating to the person in charge of a conveyance includes the purser or other person on the con- veyance who is responsible for maintaining records relating to the cargo transported in the conveyance. (e) Costs and expenses of seizure When a common carrier has been seized in ac- cordance with the provisions of subsection (c) and it is subsequently determined that a viola- tion of such subsection occurred but that the vessel will be released, the conveyance is liable for the costs and expenses of the seizure and de- tention. (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 594, 46 Stat. 751; Pub. L. 99–570, title III, § 3121, Oct. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3207–86; Pub. L. 100–690, title VI, § 6076(b), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4324.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions substantially similar to subsec. (a) of this section, so far as it relates to vessels, except that they referred to the ‘‘revenue laws,’’ instead of the ‘‘customs laws,’’ were contained in R.S. § 3088. Provisions sub- stantially similar to subsec. (b), so far as it relates to vessels, were contained in act Feb. 8, 1881, ch. 34, 21 Stat. 322. Provisions similar to subsec. (b), except that they applied to railway cars, engines, other vehicles, and teams, and referred to the owner, superintendent, or agent of the owner in charge, instead of the ‘‘con- ductor, driver,’’ etc., were contained in R.S. § 3063. All of these sections were superseded and more closely as- similated to this section by act Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, § 594, 42 Stat. 982, and repealed by sections 642 and 643 thereof. Section 594 of the 1922 act was super- seded by section 594 of act June 17, 1930, comprising this section, and repealed by section 651(a)(1) of the 1930 act. AMENDMENTS 1988—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 100–690 designated existing provisions as par. (1), redesignated former pars. (1), (2), and (3) as subpars. (A), (B), and (C), respectively, and added par. (2). 1986—Pub. L. 99–570 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section catchline read ‘‘Libel of vessels and vehicles’’ and text read as follows: ‘‘Whenever a vessel or vehicle, or the owner or master, conductor, driver, or other person in charge thereof, has become subject to a penalty for violation of the customs-rev- enue laws of the United States, such vessel or vehicle shall be held for the payment of such penalty and may be seized and proceeded against summarily by libel to recover the same: Provided, That no vessel or vehicle used by any person as a common carrier in the trans- action of business as such common carrier shall be so held or subject to seizure or forfeiture under the cus- toms laws, unless it shall appear that the owner or master of such vessel or the conductor, driver, or other person in charge of such vehicle was at the time of the alleged illegal act a consenting party or privy thereto.’’ § 1595. Searches and seizures (a) Warrant (1) If any officer or person authorized to make searches and seizures has probable cause to be- lieve that— (A) any merchandise upon which the duties have not been paid, or which has been other- wise brought into the United States unlaw- fully; (B) any property which is subject to for- feiture under any provision of law enforced or administered by the United States Customs Service; or (C) any document, container, wrapping, or other article which is evidence of a violation of section 1592 of this title involving fraud or of any other law enforced or administered by the United States Customs Service, is in any dwelling house, store, or other building or place, he may make application, under oath, to any justice of the peace, to any municipal, county, State, or Federal judge, or to any Fed- eral magistrate judge, and shall thereupon be entitled to a warrant to enter such dwelling house in the daytime only, or such store or other place at night or by day, and to search for and seize such merchandise or other article de- scribed in the warrant. (2) If any house, store, or other building or place, in which any merchandise or other article subject to forfeiture is found, is upon or within 10 feet of the boundary line between the United States and a foreign country, such portion thereof that is within the United States may be taken down or removed. (b) Entry upon property of others Any person authorized by this chapter to make searches and seizures, or any person as- sisting him or acting under his directions, may, if deemed necessary by him or them, enter into or upon or pass through the lands, inclosures, and buildings, other than the dwelling house, of any person whomsoever, in the discharge of his official duties. (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 595, 46 Stat. 752; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(y), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290; Pub. L. 99–570, title III, § 3122, Oct. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3207–87; Pub. L. 101–650, title III, § 321, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5117.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions similar to those in this section were con- tained in act Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, § 595, 42