Title 18Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-73

§2387 Activities affecting armed forces generally

Title 18 › Part PART I— - CRIMES › Chapter CHAPTER 115— - TREASON, SEDITION, AND SUBVERSIVE ACTIVITIES › § 2387

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

It is illegal for anyone to try to make U.S. service members disobey orders, be disloyal, mutiny, or refuse duty — whether by telling them to do it or by handing out printed material that urges it. "U.S. armed forces" here means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, their reserves, and crews of merchant ships when those ships are commissioned into or serving the Army or Navy.

Full Legal Text

Title 18, §2387

Crimes and Criminal Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whoever, with intent to interfere with, impair, or influence the loyalty, morale, or discipline of the military or naval forces of the United States:
(1)advises, counsels, urges, or in any manner causes or attempts to cause insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military or naval forces of the United States; or
(2)distributes or attempts to distribute any written or printed matter which advises, counsels, or urges insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military or naval forces of the United States—
(b)For the purposes of this section, the term “military or naval forces of the United States” includes the Army of the United States, the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, and Coast Guard Reserve of the United States; and, when any merchant vessel is commissioned in the Navy or is in the service of the Army or the Navy, includes the master, officers, and crew of such vessel.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

1948 ActBased on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §§ 9, 11, 13 (June 28, 1940, ch. 439, title I, §§ 1, 3, 5, 54 Stat. 670, 671). Section consolidates section 9, 11, and 13 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., with only such changes of phraseology as were necessary to effect consolidation. The revised section extends the provisions so as to include the Coast Guard Reserve in its coverage. Words “upon conviction thereof” were omitted as unnecessary, as punishment cannot be imposed until conviction is secured. Reference to conspiracy to commit any of the prohibited acts was omitted as covered by the general law incorporated in section 371 of this title. (See reviser’s note under that section.) Minor changes were made in arrangement and phraseology. 1949 ActThis section [section 46] inserts the words, “Air Force,” in subsection (b) of section 2387 of title 18, U.S.C., in view of the establishment in 1947 of this separate branch of the armed services.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2006—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 109–163 substituted “Navy Reserve” for “Naval Reserve”. 1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $10,000” in last par. 1949—Subsec. (b). Act May 24, 1949, made section applicable to the Air Force.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Transfer of Functions

For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see section 468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6. Coast Guard transferred to Department of Transportation and functions, powers, and duties, relating to Coast Guard, of Secretary of the Treasury and of other offices and officers of Department of the Treasury transferred to Secretary of Transportation by Pub. L. 89–670, Oct. 15, 1966, 80 Stat. 931, which created Department of Transportation. See section 108 of Title 49, Transportation.

Executive Documents

Transfer of Functions

Functions of all officers of Department of the Treasury and functions of all agencies and employees of such Department transferred, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of the Treasury, with power vested in him to authorize their performance or performance of any of his functions, by any of such officers, agencies, and employees, by Reorg. Plan No. 26, of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. July 31, 1950, 15 F.R. 4935, 64 Stat. 1280, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. Such plan excepted from transfer functions of Coast Guard and Commandant thereof when Coast Guard is operating as a part of the Navy under former section 1 and 3 (now 101 and 103) of Title 14, Coast Guard.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

18 U.S.C. § 2387

Title 18Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73