Title 33, Navigation and Navigable WatersRelease 119-102
§381 Use of Public Vessels to Suppress Piracy
Title 33 › CHAPTER 7 — REGULATIONS FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF PIRACY › § 381
Summary
The President may use U.S. armed ships and order their commanders to protect merchant ships and crews from pirates.
Full Legal Text
Title 33, §381
Navigation and Navigable Waters, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
The President is authorized to employ so many of the public armed vessels as in his judgment the service may require, with suitable instructions to the commanders thereof, in protecting the merchant vessels of the United States and their crews from piratical aggressions and depredations.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Codification R.S. § 4293 derived from acts Mar. 3, 1819, ch. 77, § 1, 3 Stat. 510; Jan. 30, 1823, ch. 7, 3 Stat. 721.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
33 U.S.C. § 381
Title 33, Navigation and Navigable Waters
Last Updated
Aug 21, 2026
Release point: 119-102