10 U.S.C. § 903a — Art. 103a. Espionage

Page 812 TITLE 10—ARMED FORCES § 901 abandon it, or who strikes the colors or flag to an enemy without proper authority, shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct. (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 70.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large) 900 .......... 50:694. May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 100), 64 Stat. 137. § 901. Art. 101. Improper use of countersign Any person subject to this chapter who in time of war discloses the parole or countersign to any person not entitled to receive it or who gives to another who is entitled to receive and use the parole or countersign a different parole or countersign from that which, to his knowl- edge, he was authorized and required to give, shall be punished by death or such other punish- ment as a court-martial may direct. (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 70.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large) 901 .......... 50:695. May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 101), 64 Stat. 137. § 902. Art. 102. Forcing a safeguard Any person subject to this chapter who forces a safeguard shall suffer death or such other pun- ishment as a court-martial may direct. (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 70.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large) 902 .......... 50:696. May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 102), 64 Stat. 137. § 903. Art. 103. Spies Any person who in time of war is found lurk- ing as a spy or acting as a spy in or about any place, vessel, or aircraft, within the control or jurisdiction of any of the armed forces, or in or about any shipyard, any manufacturing or in- dustrial plant, or any other place or institution engaged in work in aid of the prosecution of the war by the United States, or elsewhere, shall be tried by a general court-martial or by a military commission and on conviction shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court- martial or a military commission may direct. This section does not apply to a military com- mission established under chapter 47A of this title. (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 71, § 906; Pub. L. 109–366, § 4(a)(2), Oct. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 2631; re- numbered § 903 and amended Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LX, §§ 5401(7), 5414, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2938, 2944.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large) 906 .......... 50:700. May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 106), 64 Stat. 138. The words ‘‘of the United States’’ are omitted as sur- plusage. Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 903 was renumbered section 908a of this title. AMENDMENTS 2016—Pub. L. 114–328, § 5414, inserted ‘‘or such other punishment as a court-martial or a military commis- sion may direct’’ after ‘‘punished by death’’. Pub. L. 114–328, § 5401(7), renumbered section 906 of this title as this section. 2006—Pub. L. 109–366 inserted last sentence. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2016 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 114–328 effective on Jan. 1, 2019, as designated by the President, with imple- menting regulations and provisions relating to applica- bility to various situations, see section 5542 of Pub. L. 114–328 and Ex. Ord. No. 13825, set out as notes under section 801 of this title. Executive Documents PROCLAMATION NO. 2561. ENEMIES DENIED ACCESS TO UNITED STATES COURTS Proc. No. 2561, July 2, 1942, 7 F.R. 5101, 56 Stat. 1964, provided: Whereas the safety of the United States demands that all enemies who have entered upon the territory of the United States as part of an invasion or predatory incursion, or who have entered in order to commit sab- otage, espionage or other hostile or warlike acts, should be promptly tried in accordance with the law of war; Now, therefore, I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the statutes of the United States, do hereby proclaim that all persons who are subjects, citizens or residents of any nation at war with the United States or who give obedience to or act under the direction of any such nation, and who during time of war enter or attempt to enter the United States or any territory or possession thereof, through coastal or boundary defenses, and are charged with committing or attempting or preparing to commit sabotage, espionage, hostile or warlike acts, or violations of the law of war, shall be subject to the law of war and to the jurisdiction of military tribunals; and that such persons shall not be privileged to seek any remedy or maintain any proceeding directly or indi- rectly, or to have any such remedy or proceeding sought on their behalf, in the courts of the United States, or of its States, territories, and possessions, ex- cept under such regulations as the Attorney General, with the approval of the Secretary of War, may from time to time prescribe. § 903a. Art. 103a. Espionage (a)(1) Any person subject to this chapter who, with intent or reason to believe that it is to be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of a foreign nation, communicates, delivers, or transmits, or attempts to commu- Page 813 TITLE 10—ARMED FORCES § 904 nicate, deliver, or transmit, to any entity de- scribed in paragraph (2), either directly or indi- rectly, anything described in paragraph (3) shall be punished as a court-martial may direct, ex- cept that if the accused is found guilty of an of- fense that directly concerns (A) nuclear weap- onry, military spacecraft or satellites, early warning systems, or other means of defense or retaliation against large scale attack, (B) war plans, (C) communications intelligence or cryp- tographic information, or (D) any other major weapons system or major element of defense strategy, the accused shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct. (2) An entity referred to in paragraph (1) is— (A) a foreign government; (B) a faction or party or military or naval force within a foreign country, whether recog- nized or unrecognized by the United States; or (C) a representative, officer, agent, em- ployee, subject, or citizen of such a govern- ment, faction, party, or force. (3) A thing referred to in paragraph (1) is a document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, note, instrument, appliance, or information relating to the na- tional defense. (b)(1) No person may be sentenced by court- martial to suffer death for an offense under this section (article) unless— (A) the members of the court-martial unani- mously find at least one of the aggravating factors set out in subsection (c); and (B) the members unanimously determine that any extenuating or mitigating cir- cumstances are substantially outweighed by any aggravating circumstances, including the aggravating factors set out in subsection (c). (2) Findings under this subsection may be based on— (A) evidence introduced on the issue of guilt or innocence; (B) evidence introduced during the sen- tencing proceeding; or (C) all such evidence. (3) The accused shall be given broad latitude to present matters in extenuation and mitiga- tion. (c) A sentence of death may be adjudged by a court-martial for an offense under this section (article) only if the members unanimously find, beyond a reasonable doubt, one or more of the following aggravating factors: (1) The accused has been convicted of an- other offense involving espionage or treason for which either a sentence of death or impris- onment for life was authorized by statute. (2) In the commission of the offense, the ac- cused knowingly created a grave risk of sub- stantial damage to the national security. (3) In the commission of the offense, the ac- cused knowingly created a grave risk of death to another person. (4) Any other factor that may be prescribed by the President by regulations under section 836 of this title (article 36). (Added Pub. L. 99–145, title V, § 534(a), Nov. 8, 1985, 99 Stat. 634, § 906a; renumbered § 903a, Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LX, § 5401(7), Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2938.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2016—Pub. L. 114–328 renumbered section 906a of this title as this section. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2016 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 114–328 effective on Jan. 1, 2019, as designated by the President, with imple- menting regulations and provisions relating to applica- bility to various situations, see section 5542 of Pub. L. 114–328 and Ex. Ord. No. 13825, set out as notes under section 801 of this title. § 903b. Art. 103b. Aiding the enemy Any person who— (1) aids, or attempts to aid, the enemy with arms, ammunition, supplies, money, or other things; or (2) without proper authority, knowingly har- bors or protects or gives intelligence to, pro- vides military education, military training, or tactical advice to, or communicates or cor- responds with or holds any intercourse with the enemy, either directly or indirectly; shall suffer death or such other punishment as a court-martial or military commission may di- rect. This section does not apply to a military commission established under chapter 47A of this title. (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 70, § 904; Pub. L. 109–366, § 4(a)(2), Oct. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 2631; re- numbered § 903b, Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LX, § 5401(5), Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2938; Pub. L. 118–159, div. A, title V, § 564, Dec. 23, 2024, 138 Stat. 1904.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large) 904 .......... 50:698. May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 104), 64 Stat. 138. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2024—Par. (2). Pub. L. 118–159 inserted ‘‘provides mili- tary education, military training, or tactical advice to,’’ after ‘‘gives intelligence to,’’. 2016—Pub. L. 114–328 renumbered section 904 of this title as this section. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2016 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 114–328 effective on Jan. 1, 2019, as designated by the President, with imple- menting regulations and provisions relating to applica- bility to various situations, see section 5542 of Pub. L. 114–328 and Ex. Ord. No. 13825, set out as notes under section 801 of this title. § 904. Art. 104. Public records offenses Any person subject to this chapter who, will- fully and unlawfully— (1) alters, conceals, removes, mutilates, ob- literates, or destroys a public record; or