§ 1153. — Offenses committed within Indian country.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 18USC1153]
TITLE 18--CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I--CRIMES
CHAPTER 53--INDIANS
Sec. 1153. Offenses committed within Indian country
(a) Any Indian who commits against the person or property of another
Indian or other person any of the following offenses, namely, murder,
manslaughter, kidnapping, maiming, a felony under chapter 109A, incest,
assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a dangerous weapon,
assault resulting in serious bodily injury (as defined in section 1365
of this title), an assault against an individual who has not attained
the age of 16 years, arson, burglary, robbery, and a felony under
section 661 of this title within the Indian country, shall be subject to
the same law and penalties as all other persons committing any of the
above offenses, within the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States.
(b) Any offense referred to in subsection (a) of this section that
is not defined and punished by Federal law in force within the exclusive
jurisdiction of the United States shall be defined and punished in
accordance with the laws of the State in which such offense was
committed as are in force at the time of such offense.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 758; May 24, 1949, ch. 139, Sec. 26,
63 Stat. 94; Pub. L. 89-707, Sec. 1, Nov. 2, 1966, 80 Stat. 1100; Pub.
L. 90-284, title V, Sec. 501, Apr. 11, 1968, 82 Stat. 80; Pub. L. 94-
297, Sec. 2, May 29, 1976, 90 Stat. 585; Pub. L. 98-473, title II,
Sec. 1009, Oct. 12, 1984, 98 Stat. 2141; Pub. L. 99-303, May 15, 1986,
100 Stat. 438; Pub. L. 99-646, Sec. 87(c)(5), Nov. 10, 1986, 100 Stat.
3623; Pub. L. 99-654, Sec. 3(a)(5), Nov. 14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3663; Pub.
L. 100-690, title VII, Sec. 7027, Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4397; Pub. L.
103-322, title XVII, Sec. 170201(e), title XXXIII, Sec. 330021(1), Sept.
13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2043, 2150.)
Historical and Revision Notes
1948 Act
Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Secs. 548, 549 (Mar. 4, 1909,
ch. 321, Secs. 328, 329, 35 Stat. 1151; Mar. 3, 1911, ch. 231, Sec. 291,
36 Stat. 1167; June 28, 1932, ch. 284, 47 Stat. 337).
Section consolidates said sections 548 and 549 of title 18, U.S.C.,
1940 ed. Section 548 of said title covered 10 crimes. Section 549 of
said title covered the same except robbery and incest.
The 1932 amendment of section 548 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed.,
constituting the last paragraph of the section, is omitted and section
549 of said title to which it applied likewise is omitted. The revised
section therefore suffices to cover prosecution of the specific offenses
committed on all reservations as intended by Congress.
Words ``Indian country'' were substituted for language relating to
jurisdiction extending to reservations and rights-of-way, in view of
definitive section 1151 of this title.
Paul W. Hyatt, president, board of commissioners, Idaho State Bar,
recommended that said section 548 be considered with other sections in
title 25, Indians, U.S.C., 1940 ed., and revised to insure certainty as
to questions of jurisdiction, and punishment on conviction. Insofar as
the recommendation came within the scope of this revision, it was
followed.
The proviso in said section 548 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., which
provided that rape should be defined in accordance with the laws of the
State in which the offense was committed, was changed to include
burglary so as to clarify the punishment for that offense.
Venue provisions of said section 548 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed.,
are incorporated in section 3242 of this title.
Section 549 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., conferred special
jurisdiction on the United States District Court for South Dakota of all
crimes of murder, manslaughter, rape, assault with intent to kill,
assault with a dangerous weapon, arson, burglary, and larceny committed
within the limits of any Indian reservation within the State, whether by
or against Indians or non-Indians. The Act of February 2, 1903, 32 Stat.
793, from which said section 549 was derived, accepted the cession by
South Dakota of such jurisdiction.
The effect of revised sections 1151, 1152, and 1153 of this title is
to deprive the United States District Court for the District of South
Dakota of jurisdiction of offenses on Indian reservations committed by
non-Indians against non-Indians and to restore such jurisdiction to the
courts of the State of South Dakota as in other States. This reflects
the views of the United States attorney, George Philip, of the district
of South Dakota.
Minor changes were made in translation and phraseology.
1949 Act
This section [section 26] removes an ambiguity in section 1153 of
title 18, U.S.C., by eliminating the provision that the crime of rape in
the Indian country is to be punished in accordance with the law of the
State where the offense was committed, leaving the definition of the
offense to be determined by State law, but providing that punishment of
rape of an Indian by an Indian is to be by imprisonment at the
discretion of the court. The offense of rape, other than rape of an
Indian by an Indian within the Indian country, is covered by section
2031 of title 18, U.S.C., and the offense of burglary by sections 1152
and 3242 of such title.
Amendments
1994--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-322 substituted ``kidnapping'' for
``kidnaping'' and inserted ``(as defined in section 1365 of this title),
an assault against an individual who has not attained the age of 16
years'' after ``serious bodily injury''.
1988--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100-690 substituted ``maiming, a felony
under chapter 109A, incest'' for `` `maiming' and all that follows
through `incest' '', thus clarifying execution of amendment by Pub. L.
99-646 and Pub. L. 99-654 but resulting in no change in text. See 1986
Amendment note below.
1986--Pub. L. 99-646 and Pub. L. 99-654 which directed that section
be amended identically by substituting in first par. ``a felony under
chapter 109A,'' for ``rape, involuntary sodomy, carnal knowledge of any
female, not his wife, who has not attained the age of sixteen years,
assault with intent to commit rape,'' and by striking out in second and
third pars. ``, involuntary sodomy,'' was executed by making the
substitution in subsec. (a) for ``rape, involuntary sodomy, felonious
sexual molestation of a minor, carnal knowledge of any female, not his
wife, who has not attained the age of sixteen years, assault with intent
to commit rape,'' to reflect the probable intent of Congress in view of
prior amendment of this section by Pub. L. 99-303, but amendment to
second and third pars. could not be executed because such pars. were
struck out by Pub. L. 99-303.
Pub. L. 99-303 inserted section catchline which had been eliminated
by general amendment by section 1009 of Pub. L. 98-473, designated first
par. as subsec. (a) and inserted ``felonious sexual molestation of a
minor,'', struck out second par. which provided that, as used in this
section, the offenses of burglary, involuntary sodomy, and incest be
defined and punished in accordance with the laws of the State in which
such offense was committed as are in force at the time of such offense,
and struck out third par. and restated the provisions thereof in a new
subsec. (b), substituting ``Any offense referred to in subsection (a) of
this section that is'' for ``In addition to the offenses of burglary,
involuntary sodomy, and incest, any other of the above offenses which
are''.
1984--Pub. L. 98-473 amended section generally, inserting offenses
of maiming, involuntary sodomy and a felony committed under section 661
of this title and striking out reference to larceny in first par., and
inserting ``, involuntary sodomy,'' after ``burglary'' in third par.
1976--Pub. L. 94-297 made changes in phraseology, added offense of
kidnapping to the enumerated list of offenses subjecting any Indian to
the same laws and penalties as all other persons, struck out
applicability to assault with a dangerous weapon and assault resulting
in serious bodily injury from paragraph covering the offenses of
burglary and incest only, and substituted paragraph, relating to
offenses in addition to offenses of burglary and incest, for paragraph
relating to offenses of rape and assault with intent to commit rape.
1968--Pub. L. 90-284 inserted offense of assault resulting in
serious bodily injury.
1966--Pub. L. 89-707 inserted offenses of carnal knowledge and
assault with intent to commit rape, defined and proscribed the
punishment for assault with intent to commit rape in accordance with the
laws of the State in which the offense was committed, and required
assault with a dangerous weapon and incest to be defined and punished in
accordance with the laws of the State in which the offense was
committed.
1949--Act May 24, 1949, struck out provision that the crime of rape
is to be punished in accordance with the law of the State where the
offense was committed and in lieu inserted provision leaving punishment
up to the discretion of the court.
Effective Date of 1986 Amendments
Amendments by Pub. L. 99-646 and Pub. L. 99-654 effective,
respectively, 30 days after Nov. 10, 1986, and 30 days after Nov. 14,
1986, see section 87(e) of Pub. L. 99-646 and section 4 of Pub. L. 99-
654, set out as an Effective Date note under section 2241 of this title.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 1162, 3242, 3551, 3598,
4042, 5032 of this title; title 25 sections 1301, 1725, 1775d, 2802;
title 42 section 14135a.
