§1959 — Title 18 Crimes and Criminal Procedure | U.S. Code

Summary

It punishes anyone who uses or tries to use violent crime to get money, or to gain, keep, or raise their position in a criminal enterprise. The crimes covered are murder, kidnapping, maiming, assault with a dangerous weapon, assault that causes serious injury, threats of violence, and attempts or conspiracies to do these things. Penalties are: murder — death or life in prison, or a fine; kidnapping — any number of years or life in prison, or a fine; maiming — up to 30 years in prison, or a fine; assault with a weapon or assault causing serious injury — up to 20 years, or a fine; threatening violence — up to 5 years, or a fine; trying or planning murder or kidnapping — up to 10 years, or a fine; trying or planning maiming or serious assault — up to 3 years, or a fine. A court can often impose both prison time and a fine. “Racketeering activity” means the offenses listed in section 1961. “Enterprise” means a business, corporation, union, or any group of people (even if not a legal entity) whose actions affect interstate or foreign commerce.

Title 18, §1959

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(a)Whoever, as consideration for the receipt of, or as consideration for a promise or agreement to pay, anything of pecuniary value from an enterprise engaged in racketeering activity, or for the purpose of gaining entrance to or maintaining or increasing position in an enterprise engaged in racketeering activity, murders, kidnaps, maims, assaults with a dangerous weapon, commits assault resulting in serious bodily injury upon, or threatens to commit a crime of violence against any individual in violation of the laws of any State or the United States, or attempts or conspires so to do, shall be punished—

(1)for murder, by death or life imprisonment, or a fine under this title, or both; and for kidnapping, by imprisonment for any term of years or for life, or a fine under this title, or both;

(2)for maiming, by imprisonment for not more than thirty years or a fine under this title, or both;

(3)for assault with a dangerous weapon or assault resulting in serious bodily injury, by imprisonment for not more than twenty years or a fine under this title, or both;

(4)for threatening to commit a crime of violence, by imprisonment for not more than five years or a fine under this title, or both;

(5)for attempting or conspiring to commit murder or kidnapping, by imprisonment for not more than ten years or a fine under this title, or both; and

(6)for attempting or conspiring to commit a crime involving maiming, assault with a dangerous weapon, or assault resulting in serious bodily injury, by imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine of 11 So in original. The word “of” probably should not appear. under this title, or both.

(b)As used in this section—

(1)“racketeering activity” has the meaning set forth in section 1961 of this title; and

(2)“enterprise” includes any partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity, and any union or group of individuals associated in fact although not a legal entity, which is engaged in, or the activities of which affect, interstate or foreign commerce.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1994—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(2)(C), substituted “fine under this title” for “fine of not more than $250,000” in two places. Pub. L. 103–322, § 60003(a)(12), amended par. (1) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (1) read as follows: “(1) for murder or kidnaping, by imprisonment for any term of years or for life or a fine of not more than $50,000, or both;”. Subsec. (a)(2) to (4). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(2)(C), substituted “fine under this title” for “fine of not more than $30,000” in par. (2), “fine of not more than $20,000” in par. (3), and “fine of not more than $5,000” in par. (4). Subsec. (a)(5). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330021(1), substituted “kidnapping” for “kidnaping”. Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(2)(C), substituted “fine under this title” for “fine of not more than $10,000”. Subsec. (a)(6). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(J), substituted “under this title” for “not more than $3,000” after “fine of”. 1988—Pub. L. 100–690 renumbered section 1952B of this title as this section.

§1959 Violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity

Summary

Title 18, §1959

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

Citations & Metadata