18 U.S.C. § 245 — Federally protected activities

Page 94 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 245 lumbia, or in any Territory, or Possession of the United States, causes any person wearing the uniform of any of the armed forces of the United States to be discriminated against because of that uniform, shall be fined under this title. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 697; May 24, 1949, ch. 139, § 5, 63 Stat. 90; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(G), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES 1948 ACT Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 523 (Mar. 1, 1911, ch. 187, 36 Stat. 963; Aug. 24, 1912, ch. 387, § 1, 37 Stat. 512; Jan. 28, 1915, ch. 20, § 1, 38 Stat. 800). Words ‘‘guilty of a misdemeanor’’, following ‘‘shall be’’, were omitted as unnecessary in view of definition of ‘‘misdemeanor’’ in section 1 of this title. (See revis- er’s note under section 212 of this title.) Changes were made in phraseology. 1949 ACT This section [section 5] substitutes, in section 244 of title 18, U.S.C., ‘‘any of the armed forces of the United States’’ for the enumeration of specific branches and thereby includes the Air Force, formerly part of the Army. This clarification is necessary because of the es- tablishment of the Air Force as a separate branch of the Armed Forces by the act of July 26, 1947. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $500’’. 1949—Act May 24, 1949, substituted ‘‘any of the armed forces of the United States’’ for enumeration of the spe- cific branches. § 245. Federally protected activities (a)(1) Nothing in this section shall be con- strued as indicating an intent on the part of Congress to prevent any State, any possession or Commonwealth of the United States, or the Dis- trict of Columbia, from exercising jurisdiction over any offense over which it would have juris- diction in the absence of this section, nor shall anything in this section be construed as depriv- ing State and local law enforcement authorities of responsibility for prosecuting acts that may be violations of this section and that are viola- tions of State and local law. No prosecution of any offense described in this section shall be un- dertaken by the United States except upon the certification in writing of the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, the Associate At- torney General, or any Assistant Attorney Gen- eral specially designated by the Attorney Gen- eral that in his judgment a prosecution by the United States is in the public interest and nec- essary to secure substantial justice, which func- tion of certification may not be delegated. (2) Nothing in this subsection shall be con- strued to limit the authority of Federal officers, or a Federal grand jury, to investigate possible violations of this section. (b) Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, by force or threat of force willfully in- jures, intimidates or interferes with, or at- tempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with— (1) any person because he is or has been, or in order to intimidate such person or any other person or any class of persons from— (A) voting or qualifying to vote, qualifying or campaigning as a candidate for elective office, or qualifying or acting as a poll watcher, or any legally authorized election official, in any primary, special, or general election; (B) participating in or enjoying any ben- efit, service, privilege, program, facility, or activity provided or administered by the United States; (C) applying for or enjoying employment, or any perquisite thereof, by any agency of the United States; (D) serving, or attending upon any court in connection with possible service, as a grand or petit juror in any court of the United States; (E) participating in or enjoying the bene- fits of any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance; or (2) any person because of his race, color, reli- gion or national origin and because he is or has been— (A) enrolling in or attending any public school or public college; (B) participating in or enjoying any ben- efit, service, privilege, program, facility or activity provided or administered by any State or subdivision thereof; (C) applying for or enjoying employment, or any perquisite thereof, by any private em- ployer or any agency of any State or sub- division thereof, or joining or using the serv- ices or advantages of any labor organization, hiring hall, or employment agency; (D) serving, or attending upon any court of any State in connection with possible serv- ice, as a grand or petit juror; (E) traveling in or using any facility of interstate commerce, or using any vehicle, terminal, or facility of any common carrier by motor, rail, water, or air; (F) enjoying the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of any inn, hotel, motel, or other establish- ment which provides lodging to transient guests, or of any restaurant, cafeteria, lunchroom, lunch counter, soda fountain, or other facility which serves the public and which is principally engaged in selling food or beverages for consumption on the prem- ises, or of any gasoline station, or of any motion picture house, theater, concert hall, sports arena, stadium, or any other place of exhibition or entertainment which serves the public, or of any other establishment which serves the public and (i) which is lo- cated within the premises of any of the aforesaid establishments or within the prem- ises of which is physically located any of the aforesaid establishments, and (ii) which holds itself out as serving patrons of such es- tablishments; or (3) during or incident to a riot or civil dis- order, any person engaged in a business in commerce or affecting commerce, including, but not limited to, any person engaged in a business which sells or offers for sale to inter- state travelers a substantial portion of the ar- ticles, commodities, or services which it sells Page 95 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 245 or where a substantial portion of the articles or commodities which it sells or offers for sale have moved in commerce; or (4) any person because he is or has been, or in order to intimidate such person or any other person or any class of persons from— (A) participating, without discrimination on account of race, color, religion or na- tional origin, in any of the benefits or ac- tivities described in subparagraphs (1)(A) through (1)(E) or subparagraphs (2)(A) through (2)(F); or (B) affording another person or class of persons opportunity or protection to so par- ticipate; or (5) any citizen because he is or has been, or in order to intimidate such citizen or any other citizen from lawfully aiding or encour- aging other persons to participate, without discrimination on account of race, color, reli- gion or national origin, in any of the benefits or activities described in subparagraphs (1)(A) through (1)(E) or subparagraphs (2)(A) through (2)(F), or participating lawfully in speech or peaceful assembly opposing any denial of the opportunity to so participate— shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, at- tempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and if death results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kid- nap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title or impris- oned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death. As used in this sec- tion, the term ‘‘participating lawfully in speech or peaceful assembly’’ shall not mean the aid- ing, abetting, or inciting of other persons to riot or to commit any act of physical violence upon any individual or against any real or personal property in furtherance of a riot. Nothing in subparagraph (2)(F) or (4)(A) of this subsection shall apply to the proprietor of any establish- ment which provides lodging to transient guests, or to any employee acting on behalf of such proprietor, with respect to the enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, ad- vantages, or accommodations of such establish- ment if such establishment is located within a building which contains not more than five rooms for rent or hire and which is actually oc- cupied by the proprietor as his residence. (c) Nothing in this section shall be construed so as to deter any law enforcement officer from lawfully carrying out the duties of his office; and no law enforcement officer shall be consid- ered to be in violation of this section for law- fully carrying out the duties of his office or law- fully enforcing ordinances and laws of the United States, the District of Columbia, any of the several States, or any political subdivision of a State. For purposes of the preceding sen- tence, the term ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ means any officer of the United States, the Dis- trict of Columbia, a State, or political subdivi- sion of a State, who is empowered by law to con- duct investigations of, or make arrests because of, offenses against the United States, the Dis- trict of Columbia, a State, or a political subdivi- sion of a State. (d) For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘State’’ includes a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, and any common- wealth, territory, or possession of the United States. (Added Pub. L. 90–284, title I, § 101(a), Apr. 11, 1968, 82 Stat. 73; amended Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7020(a), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4396; Pub. L. 101–647, title XII, § 1205(b), Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4830; Pub. L. 103–322, title VI, § 60006(c), title XXXII, § 320103(c), title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(H), (L), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1971, 2109, 2147; Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, § 604(b)(14)(C), (37), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3507, 3509.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1996—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 104–294 amended Pub. L. 103–322, § 320103(c). See 1994 Amendment notes below. 1994—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(L), sub- stituted ‘‘shall be fined under this title’’ for ‘‘shall be fined not more than $10,000’’ before ‘‘, or imprisoned not more than ten years’’ in concluding provisions. Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(H), substituted ‘‘shall be fined under this title’’ for ‘‘shall be fined not more than $1,000’’ before ‘‘, or imprisoned not more than one year’’ in concluding provisions. Pub. L. 103–322, § 320103(c)(4)–(6), in concluding provi- sions, inserted ‘‘from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an at- tempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an at- tempt to kill,’’ after ‘‘death results’’ and substituted ‘‘shall be fined under this title or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both’’ for ‘‘shall be subject to imprisonment for any term of years or for life’’. Pub. L. 103–322, § 320103(c)(3), which provided for amendment identical to Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(L), above, was repealed by Pub. L. 104–294, § 604(b)(14)(C). Pub. L. 103–322, § 320103(c)(2), as amended by Pub. L. 104–294, § 604(b)(37), inserted ‘‘from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire’’ after ‘‘bodily injury re- sults’’ in concluding provisions. Pub. L. 103–322, § 320103(c)(1), which provided for amendment identical to Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(H), above, was repealed by Pub. L. 104–294, § 604(b)(14)(C). Pub. L. 103–322, § 60006(c), in concluding provisions, in- serted ‘‘, or may be sentenced to death’’ before ‘‘. As used in this section’’. 1990—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 101–647 added subsec. (d). 1988—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 100–690 substituted ‘‘, the Deputy’’ for ‘‘or the Deputy’’ and inserted ‘‘, the Asso- ciate Attorney General, or any Assistant Attorney General specially designated by the Attorney General’’ after ‘‘Deputy Attorney General’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1996 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 104–294 effective Sept. 13, 1994, see section 604(d) of Pub. L. 104–294, set out as a note under section 13 of this title. FAIR HOUSING Pub. L. 90–284, title I, § 101(b), Apr. 11, 1968, 82 Stat. 75, provided that: ‘‘Nothing contained in this section [en- acting this section] shall apply to or affect activities Page 96 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 246 under title VIII of this Act [sections 3601 to 3619 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare].’’ RIOTS OR CIVIL DISTURBANCES, SUPPRESSION AND RES- TORATION OF LAW AND ORDER; ACTS OR OMISSIONS OF ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF MILITARY SERVICE NOT SUBJECT TO THIS SECTION Pub. L. 90–284, title I, § 101(c), Apr. 11, 1968, 82 Stat. 75, provided that: ‘‘The provisions of this section [enacting this section] shall not apply to acts or omissions on the part of law enforcement officers, members of the Na- tional Guard, as defined in section 101(9) of title 10, United States Code [now 10 U.S.C. 101(c)(1)], members of the organized militia of any State or the District of Co- lumbia, not covered by such section 101(9), or members of the Armed Forces of the United States, who are en- gaged in suppressing a riot or civil disturbance or re- storing law and order during a riot or civil disturb- ance.’’ § 246. Deprivation of relief benefits Whoever directly or indirectly deprives, at- tempts to deprive, or threatens to deprive any person of any employment, position, work, com- pensation, or other benefit provided for or made possible in whole or in part by any Act of Con- gress appropriating funds for work relief or re- lief purposes, on account of political affiliation, race, color, sex, religion, or national origin, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both. (Added Pub. L. 94–453, § 4(a), Oct. 2, 1976, 90 Stat. 1517; amended Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(L), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $10,000’’. § 247. Damage to religious property; obstruction of persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs (a) Whoever, in any of the circumstances re- ferred to in subsection (b) of this section— (1) intentionally defaces, damages, or de- stroys any religious real property, because of the religious character of that property, or at- tempts to do so; or (2) intentionally obstructs, by force or threat of force, including by threat of force against religious real property, any person in the enjoyment of that person’s free exercise of religious beliefs, or attempts to do so; shall be punished as provided in subsection (d). (b) The circumstances referred to in sub- section (a) are that the offense is in or affects interstate or foreign commerce. (c) Whoever intentionally defaces, damages, or destroys any religious real property because of the race, color, or ethnic characteristics of any individual associated with that religious prop- erty, or attempts to do so, shall be punished as provided in subsection (d). (d) The punishment for a violation of sub- section (a) or (c) of this section shall be— (1) if death results from acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggra- vated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, a fine in accordance with this title and imprisonment for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death; (2) if bodily injury results to any person, in- cluding any public safety officer performing duties as a direct or proximate result of con- duct prohibited by this section, and the viola- tion is by means of fire or an explosive, a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more that 40 years, or both; (3) if bodily injury to any person, including any public safety officer performing duties as a direct or proximate result of conduct prohib- ited by this section, results from the acts com- mitted in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threat- ened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire, a fine in accordance with this title and imprisonment for not more than 20 years, or both; (4) if damage to or destruction of property results from the acts committed in violation of this section, which damage to or destruc- tion of such property is in an amount that ex- ceeds $5,000, a fine in accordance with this title, imprisonment for not more than 3 years, or both; and (5) in any other case, a fine in accordance with this title and imprisonment for not more than one year, or both. (e) No prosecution of any offense described in this section shall be undertaken by the United States except upon the certification in writing of the Attorney General or his designee that in his judgment a prosecution by the United States is in the public interest and necessary to secure substantial justice. (f) As used in this section, the term ‘‘religious real property’’ means any church, synagogue, mosque, religious cemetery, or other religious real property, including fixtures or religious ob- jects contained within a place of religious wor- ship, or real property owned or leased by a non- profit, religiously affiliated organization. (g) No person shall be prosecuted, tried, or punished for any noncapital offense under this section unless the indictment is found or the in- formation is instituted not later than 7 years after the date on which the offense was com- mitted. (Added Pub. L. 100–346, § 1, June 24, 1988, 102 Stat. 644; amended Pub. L. 103–322, title VI, § 60006(d), title XXXII, § 320103(d), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1971, 2110; Pub. L. 104–155, § 3, July 3, 1996, 110 Stat. 1392; Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, §§ 601(c)(3), 605(r), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3499, 3511; Pub. L. 107–273, div. B, title IV, § 4002(c)(1), (e)(4), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1808, 1810; Pub. L. 115–249, § 2, Sept. 28, 2018, 132 Stat. 3162.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2018—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 115–249, § 2(1), inserted ‘‘including by threat of force against religious real property,’’ after ‘‘threat of force,’’. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 115–249, § 2(2)(A), inserted ‘‘or (c)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)’’ in introductory provisions. Subsec. (d)(4), (5). Pub. L. 115–249, § 2(2)(B)–(D), added par. (4) and redesignated former par. (4) as (5). Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 115–249, § 2(3), inserted ‘‘, or real property owned or leased by a nonprofit, religiously af- filiated organization’’ before period at end.