PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

It makes it a crime to try to stop or slow a federal criminal investigation by bribery or by warning people about secret requests for records. Bribing someone to keep them from telling a federal investigator about a crime can bring fines or up to 5 years in jail. A bank officer who, intending to block a court case, tells anyone about a federal subpoena for the bank’s records or about information the bank gave can be fined or jailed up to 5 years. If that bank officer tells the customer whose records were subpoenaed or a person named in the subpoena, the penalty is fines or up to 1 year in jail. People who work in or run an insurance business who, intending to obstruct a court case, tell others about a federal grand jury subpoena for the business’s records or about information given to the grand jury can be fined or jailed up to 5 years. Also, if someone has been told about specific legal secrecy or privacy rules and then knowingly breaks them to obstruct an investigation or court case, they can be fined or jailed up to 5 years. An “officer of a financial institution” means officers, directors, partners, employees, agents, or attorneys of the institution. A “subpoena for records” means certain federal subpoenas or orders for customer records tied to financial crimes such as bank fraud, money laundering, and related offenses. A “criminal investigator” means someone officially authorized by a U.S. department, agency, or armed force to investigate or prosecute federal crimes.

Title 18, §1510

Crimes and Criminal Procedure, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whoever willfully endeavors by means of bribery to obstruct, delay, or prevent the communication of information relating to a violation of any criminal statute of the United States by any person to a criminal investigator shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

(b)(1)Whoever, being an officer of a financial institution, with the intent to obstruct a judicial proceeding, directly or indirectly notifies any other person about the existence or contents of a subpoena for records of that financial institution, or information that has been furnished in response to that subpoena, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

(2)Whoever, being an officer of a financial institution, directly or indirectly notifies—

(A)a customer of that financial institution whose records are sought by a subpoena for records; or

(B)any other person named in that subpoena;

about the existence or contents of that subpoena or information that has been furnished in response to that subpoena, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.

(3)As used in this subsection—

(A)the term “an officer of a financial institution” means an officer, director, partner, employee, agent, or attorney of or for a financial institution; and

(B)the term “subpoena for records” means a Federal grand jury subpoena, a subpoena issued under section 3486 of this title, or an order or subpoena issued in accordance with section 3512 of this title, section 5318 of title 31, or section 1782 of title 28, for customer records that has been served relating to a violation of, or a conspiracy to violate—

(i)section 215, 656, 657, 1005, 1006, 1007, 1014, 1344, 1956, 1957, 1960, an offense against a foreign nation constituting specified unlawful activity under section 1956, a foreign offense for which enforcement of a foreign forfeiture judgment could be brought under section 2467 of title 28, or chapter 53 of title 31; or

(ii)section 1341 or 1343 affecting a financial institution.

(c)As used in this section, the term “criminal investigator” means any individual duly authorized by a department, agency, or armed force of the United States to conduct or engage in investigations of or prosecutions for violations of the criminal laws of the United States.

(d)(1)Whoever—

(A)acting as, or being, an officer, director, agent or employee of a person engaged in the business of insurance whose activities affect interstate commerce, or

(B)is engaged in the business of insurance whose activities affect interstate commerce or is involved (other than as an insured or beneficiary under a policy of insurance) in a transaction relating to the conduct of affairs of such a business,

with intent to obstruct a judicial proceeding, directly or indirectly notifies any other person about the existence or contents of a subpoena for records of that person engaged in such business or information that has been furnished to a Federal grand jury in response to that subpoena, shall be fined as provided by this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

(2)As used in paragraph (1), the term “subpoena for records” means a Federal grand jury subpoena for records that has been served relating to a violation of, or a conspiracy to violate, section 1033 of this title.

(e)Whoever, having been notified of the applicable disclosure prohibitions or confidentiality requirements of section 2709(c)(1) of this title, section 626(d)(1) or 627(c)(1) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681u(d)(1) or 1681v(c)(1)), section 1114(a)(3)(A) or 1114(a)(5)(D)(i) of the Right to Financial Privacy Act (12 U.S.C. 3414(a)(3)(A) or 3414(a)(5)(D)(i)), or section 802(b)(1) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 436(b)(1)), knowingly and with the intent to obstruct an investigation or judicial proceeding violates such prohibitions or requirements applicable by law to such person shall be imprisoned for not more than five years, fined under this title, or both.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The National Security Act of 1947, referred to in subsec. (e), is act July 26, 1947, ch. 343, 61 Stat. 495, which was formerly classified principally to chapter 15 (§ 401 et seq.) of Title 50, War and National Defense, prior to editorial reclassification in chapter 44 (§ 3001 et seq.) of Title 50. section 802 of this Act is now classified to section 3162 of Title 50. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (b)(3)(B). Pub. L. 116–283, § 6308(c)(1), substituted “, a subpoena issued under section 3486 of this title, or an order or subpoena issued in accordance with section 3512 of this title, section 5318 of title 31, or section 1782 of title 28” for “or a Department of Justice subpoena (issued under section 3486 of title 18)” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (b)(3)(B)(i). Pub. L. 116–283, § 6308(c)(2), inserted “, 1960, an offense against a foreign nation constituting specified unlawful activity under section 1956, a foreign offense for which

Enforcement

of a foreign forfeiture judgment could be brought under section 2467 of title 28” after “1957”. 2010—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 111–148, § 10606(d)(1)(A), struck out “to the grand jury” after “has been furnished”. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 111–148, § 10606(d)(1)(B)(ii), struck out “to the grand jury” after “has been furnished” in concluding provisions. Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 111–148, § 10606(d)(1)(B)(i), substituted “subpoena for records” for “grand jury subpoena”. 2006—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 109–177 added subsec. (e). 1996—Subsec. (b)(3)(B). Pub. L. 104–191 which directed the insertion of “or a Department of Justice subpoena (issued under section 3486 of title 18),” after “subpoena”, was executed by making the insertion after “subpoena” the second place it appeared to reflect the probable intent of Congress. 1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–322, § 330016(1)(K), substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $5,000”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 103–322, § 320604(c), added subsec. (d). 1992—Subsec. (b)(3)(B)(i). Pub. L. 102–550 substituted “1344, 1956, 1957, or chapter 53 of title 31” for “or 1344”. 1989—Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 101–73 added subsec. (b) and redesignated former subsec. (b) as (c). 1982—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 97–291 struck out “, misrepresentation, intimidation, or force or threats thereof” after “bribery”, and struck out provision applying the penalties provided by this subsection to whoever injured any person in his person or property on account of the giving by such person or any other person of any information relating to a violation of any criminal statute of the United States to any criminal investigator.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1982 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 97–291 effective Oct. 12, 1982, see section 9(a) of Pub. L. 97–291, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 1512 of this title.

§1510 Obstruction of Criminal Investigations

Summary

Title 18, §1510

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

Amendments

Enforcement

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Effective Date

Citations & Metadata