§1612 Jurisdiction of District Court

Summary

Gives the District Court of the Virgin Islands the same powers as a U.S. District Court, including diversity cases under 28 U.S.C. 1332 and bankruptcy matters. The court alone handles all criminal and civil cases about the Virgin Islands’ income tax laws (except related local laws the Territory’s legislature makes). Acts that would be tax crimes under chapter 75 of subtitle F of title 26 count as offenses against the Virgin Islands and can be prosecuted in the District Court by Virgin Islands officials without asking or getting the U.S. attorney’s permission, even despite the rule in section 1617. Also gives the District Court original authority over cases in the Virgin Islands that local courts do not have, but not for small matters: it cannot hear civil cases under $500 (not counting interest and costs), criminal cases where the maximum penalty is a $100 fine or six months in jail (or both), or violations of local police and executive rules; those go to local courts. When a case is in the District Court only because of this general power, the court counts as a local court for grand jury or jury-trial rules. The District Court shares jurisdiction with local courts for criminal offenses that are the same as, part of, or connected to acts that are also offenses under the laws the District Court handles under the rules above.