18 U.S.C. § 1071 — Concealing person from arrest

Page 332 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 1071 § 1071. Concealing person from arrest Whoever harbors or conceals any person for whose arrest a warrant or process has been issued under the provisions of any law of the United States, so as to prevent his discovery and arrest, after notice or knowledge of the fact that a warrant or process has been issued for the ap- prehension of such person, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; except that if the warrant or process issued on a charge of felony, or after conviction of such person of any offense, the punishment shall be a fine under this title, or imprisonment for not more than five years, or both. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 755; Aug. 20, 1954, ch. 771, 68 Stat. 747; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(H), (K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147; Pub. L. 107–273, div. B, title IV, § 4003(a)(3), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1811.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 246 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, § 141, 35 Stat. 1114). Section 246 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., was divided. Part is in this section and the remainder is incor- porated in section 752 of this title. Minor changes were made in phraseology. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2002—Pub. L. 107–273 substituted ‘‘fine under this title’’ for ‘‘fine of under this title’’. 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘under this title’’ for ‘‘not more than $1,000’’ after ‘‘person, shall be fined’’ and for ‘‘not more than $5,000’’ after ‘‘shall be a fine of’’. 1954—Act Aug. 20, 1954, increased the penalty from 6 months to 1 year where the violator harbored a person for whom process has been issued on a misdemeanor charge and inserted the penalty provision where the violation occurred after a person has been convicted of any offense or where a process has been issued for a fel- ony. § 1072. Concealing escaped prisoner Whoever willfully harbors or conceals any prisoner after his escape from the custody of the Attorney General or from a Federal penal or correctional institution, shall be imprisoned not more than three years. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 755.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §§ 753i, 910 (May 14, 1930, ch. 274, § 10, 46 Stat. 327; May 27, 1930, ch. 339, § 10, 46 Stat. 390). Section consolidates similar language of said sections of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed. Remaining provisions are in section 752 of this title. Words ‘‘willfully harbors’’ were added in conformity with section 1071 of this title. Punishment for har- boring violators of the Espionage laws is provided in section 792 of this title. Punishment for harboring de- serters from the armed forces is provided in section 1381 of this title. Minor changes were made in phraseology. § 1073. Flight to avoid prosecution or giving testi- mony Whoever moves or travels in interstate or for- eign commerce with intent either (1) to avoid prosecution, or custody or confinement after conviction, under the laws of the place from which he flees, for a crime, or an attempt to commit a crime, punishable by death or which is a felony under the laws of the place from which the fugitive flees, or (2) to avoid giving testi- mony in any criminal proceedings in such place in which the commission of an offense punish- able by death or which is a felony under the laws of such place, is charged, or (3) to avoid service of, or contempt proceedings for alleged disobe- dience of, lawful process requiring attendance and the giving of testimony or the production of documentary evidence before an agency of a State empowered by the law of such State to conduct investigations of alleged criminal ac- tivities, shall be fined under this title or impris- oned not more than five years, or both. For the purposes of clause (3) of this paragraph, the term ‘‘State’’ includes a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, and any com- monwealth, territory, or possession of the United States. Violations of this section may be prosecuted only in the Federal judicial district in which the original crime was alleged to have been com- mitted, or in which the person was held in cus- tody or confinement, or in which an avoidance of service of process or a contempt referred to in clause (3) of the first paragraph of this section is alleged to have been committed, and only upon formal approval in writing by the Attorney Gen- eral, the Deputy Attorney General, the Asso- ciate Attorney General, or an Assistant Attor- ney General of the United States, which func- tion of approving prosecutions may not be dele- gated. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 755; Apr. 6, 1956, ch. 177, § 1, 70 Stat. 100; Pub. L. 87–368, Oct. 4, 1961, 75 Stat. 795; Pub. L. 91–452, title III, § 302, Oct. 15, 1970, 84 Stat. 932; Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7020(b), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4396; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, §§ 330004(19), 330016(1)(K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2142, 2147; Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, § 607(e), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3511.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 408e (May 18, 1934, ch. 302, 48 Stat. 782; Aug. 2, 1946, ch. 735, 60 Stat. 789). Said section 408e was rewritten and the phrase ‘‘of- fenses as they are defined either at common law or by the laws of the place from which the fugitive flees’’ were inserted to remove the ambiguity discussed in the opinion of the Circuit Court of Appeals, Third Circuit, in Brandenburg v. U.S., decided September 6, 1944, not yet reported [144 F2d 656], reversing the conviction of the appellant. The court held that Congress intended the enumerated offenses to mean those as defined at common law. The effect of the rewritten section is to make the statute applicable whether the offense com- mitted is one defined at common law or by the law of the state from which the fugitive flees. The words ‘‘offense punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary’’ were substituted for ‘‘felony’’ to make the statute uniformly applicable and to include crimes of the grade of felony even where, as in New Jersey, they are denominated as misdemeanor, high mis- demeanor or otherwise. Words ‘‘from any State, Territory, or possession of the United States or the District of Columbia’’ were omitted in view of definitive section 10 of this title. Words ‘‘upon conviction thereof’’ were deleted as sur- plusage since punishment cannot be imposed until a conviction is secured.