Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal Procedure
Part I · Chapter 105 — Sabotage
§ 2153. Destruction of war material, war premises, or war utilities
Statutory text
Whoever, when the United States is at war, or in times of national emergency as declared by the President or by the Congress, with intent to injure, interfere with, or obstruct the United States or any associate nation in preparing for or carrying on the war or defense activities, or, with reason to believe that his act may injure, interfere with, or obstruct the United States or any associate nation in preparing for or carrying on the war or defense activities, willfully injures, destroys, contaminates or infects, or attempts to so injure, destroy, contaminate or infect any war material, war premises, or war utilities, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than thirty years, or both.
If two or more persons conspire to violate this section, and one or more of such persons do any act to effect the object of the conspiracy, each of the parties to such conspiracy shall be punished as provided in subsection (a) of this section.
Legislative history
Reconstructed from this section’s Code source credit and amendment notes, resolved against the local Statutes at Large. Editorial notes are evidence, not the law that made the change.
Pub. L. 80–645 · 62 Stat. 683
Enacted · 18 U.S.C. § 2153
June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 799
Source evidence
Code source credit
June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 799Public Law not identified
Inserted · 18 U.S.C. § 2153(a)
Subsec. (a). Act June 30, 1953, inserted “or defense activities” after “carrying on the war”
Unresolved: No Public Law or Statutes at Large citation in the Code source.
Source evidence
Code amendment note
Subsec. (a). Act June 30, 1953, inserted “or defense activities” after “carrying on the war”.Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994
Pub. L. 103–322 title XXXIII § 330016(1)(L) · 108 Stat. 1796
Substituted · 18 U.S.C. § 2153(a)
Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $10,000”
Source evidence
Code amendment note
Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $10,000”.Enacted provision · exact public law section
(L) in sections 33, 224, 231, 241, 245, 246, 286, 289, 332, 335, 337, 351, 371, 437, 440, 441, 493, 496, 500, 510, 545, 595, 599, 600, 601, 641, 664, 665, 667, 757, 792, 793, 798, 844, 892, 893, 894, 924, 952, 955, 962, 963, 964, 965, 966, 967, 970, 1001, 1002, 1003, 1019, 1020, 1022, 1023, 1027, 1082, 1084, 1115, 1202, 1361, 1362, 1364, 1365, 1385, 1461, 1462, 1464, 1587, 1623, 1654, 1656, 1735, 1737, 1751, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1910, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1958, 1992, 2101, 2113, 2153, 2154, 2155, 2156, 2231, 2232, 2271, 2274, 2275, 2314, 2315, 2383, 2386, 2387, 2388, and 2512 by striking “not more than $10,000” each place it appears and inserting “under this title”;
1 of 3 references resolved to an enrolled provision · 1 partial · 1 unresolved
Notes
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on section 102 of title 50, U.S.C., 1940 ed., War and National Defense (Apr. 20, 1918, ch. 59, § 2, 40 Stat. 534).
“As herein defined” was deleted as surplusage.
The conspiracy provisions are new. Their addition to the section was strongly urged by the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, considering the gravity of the substantive offense as evidenced by the prescribed punishment therefor. The punishment provisions of the general conspiracy statute, section 371 of this title, are inadequate.
Words “upon conviction thereof” were omitted as unnecessary since punishment cannot be imposed until a conviction is secured.
Minor changes were made in phraseology.
Editorial Notes
Amendments1953–1994 · 3 rounds
1994
Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $10,000”.
1954
Act , made section applicable in time of national emergency as well as war, and recognized the possibility of bacteriological warfare by making “contamination” a crime.
1953
Subsec. (a). Act , inserted “or defense activities” after “carrying on the war”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Repeals
Act June 30, 1953, ch. 175, § 7, 67 Stat. 134, repealed Joint Res. July 3, 1952, ch. 570, § 1(a)(29), 66 Stat. 333; Joint Res. Mar. 31, 1953, ch. 13, § 1, 67 Stat. 18, formerly cited as credits to this section and also formerly set out as a note under this section.
Credits
1948–1994 · 4 acts
- 1948June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 799
- 1953June 30, 1953, ch. 175, § 2, 67 Stat. 133
- 1954Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1261, title I, § 102, 68 Stat. 1217
- 1994Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(L), , 108 Stat. 2147.
Show as published
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 799; June 30, 1953, ch. 175, § 2, 67 Stat. 133; Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1261, title I, § 102, 68 Stat. 1217; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(L), , 108 Stat. 2147.)