§ 794. — Gathering or delivering defense information to aid foreign government.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 18USC794]
TITLE 18--CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I--CRIMES
CHAPTER 37--ESPIONAGE AND CENSORSHIP
Sec. 794. Gathering or delivering defense information to aid
foreign government
(a) Whoever, with intent or reason to believe that it is to be used
to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of a foreign
nation, communicates, delivers, or transmits, or attempts to
communicate, deliver, or transmit, to any foreign government, or to any
faction or party or military or naval force within a foreign country,
whether recognized or unrecognized by the United States, or to any
representative, officer, agent, employee, subject, or citizen thereof,
either directly or indirectly, any document, writing, code book, signal
book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map,
model, note, instrument, appliance, or information relating to the
national defense, shall be punished by death or by imprisonment for any
term of years or for life, except that the sentence of death shall not
be imposed unless the jury or, if there is no jury, the court, further
finds that the offense resulted in the identification by a foreign power
(as defined in section 101(a) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Act of 1978) of an individual acting as an agent of the United States
and consequently in the death of that individual, or directly concerned
nuclear weaponry, military spacecraft or satellites, early warning
systems, or other means of defense or retaliation against large-scale
attack; war plans; communications intelligence or cryptographic
information; or any other major weapons system or major element of
defense strategy.
(b) Whoever, in time of war, with intent that the same shall be
communicated to the enemy, collects, records, publishes, or
communicates, or attempts to elicit any information with respect to the
movement, numbers, description, condition, or disposition of any of the
Armed Forces, ships, aircraft, or war materials of the United States, or
with respect to the plans or conduct, or supposed plans or conduct of
any naval or military operations, or with respect to any works or
measures undertaken for or connected with, or intended for the
fortification or defense of any place, or any other information relating
to the public defense, which might be useful to the enemy, shall be
punished by death or by imprisonment for any term of years or for life.
(c) If two or more persons conspire to violate this section, and one
or more of such persons do any act to effect the object of the
conspiracy, each of the parties to such conspiracy shall be subject to
the punishment provided for the offense which is the object of such
conspiracy.
(d)(1) Any person convicted of a violation of this section shall
forfeit to the United States irrespective of any provision of State
law--
(A) any property constituting, or derived from, any proceeds the
person obtained, directly or indirectly, as the result of such
violation, and
(B) any of the person's property used, or intended to be used,
in any manner or part, to commit, or to facilitate the commission
of, such violation.
For the purposes of this subsection, the term ``State'' includes a State
of the United States, the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth,
territory, or possession of the United States.
(2) The court, in imposing sentence on a defendant for a conviction
of a violation of this section, shall order that the defendant forfeit
to the United States all property described in paragraph (1) of this
subsection.
(3) The provisions of subsections (b), (c) and (e) through (p) of
section 413 of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act
of 1970 (21 U.S.C. 853(b), (c), and (e)-(p)) shall apply to--
(A) property subject to forfeiture under this subsection;
(B) any seizure or disposition of such property; and
(C) any administrative or judicial proceeding in relation to
such property,
if not inconsistent with this subsection.
(4) Notwithstanding section 524(c) of title 28, there shall be
deposited in the Crime Victims Fund in the Treasury all amounts from the
forfeiture of property under this subsection remaining after the payment
of expenses for forfeiture and sale authorized by law.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 737; Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1261, title
II, Sec. 201, 68 Stat. 1219; Pub. L. 99-399, title XIII, Sec. 1306(b),
Aug. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 898; Pub. L. 100-690, title VII, Sec. 7064,
Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4404; Pub. L. 103-322, title VI,
Sec. 60003(a)(2), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1968; Pub. L. 103-359, title
VIII, Sec. 804(b)(2), Oct. 14, 1994, 108 Stat. 3440; Pub. L. 104-294,
title VI, Secs. 604(b)(2), 607(b), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3506, 3511.)
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on sections 32 and 34 of title 50, U.S.C., 1940 ed., War and
National Defense (June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title I, Secs. 2, 4, 40 Stat.
218, 219).
Section consolidates sections 32 and 34 of title 50, U.S.C., 1940
ed., War and National Defense.
The words ``or induces or aids another'' were omitted as unnecessary
in view of definition of ``principal'' in section 2 of this title.
The conspiracy provision of said section 34 was also incorporated in
section 2388 of this title.
Minor changes were made in phraseology.
References in Text
Section 101(a) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978,
referred to in subsec. (a), is classified to section 1801(a) of Title
50, War and National Defense.
Amendments
1996--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 104-294, Sec. 604(b)(2), amended
directory language of Pub. L. 103-322, Sec. 60003(a)(2). See 1994
Amendment note below.
Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 104-294, Sec. 607(b), inserted at end ``For
the purposes of this subsection, the term `State' includes a State of
the United States, the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth,
territory, or possession of the United States.''
1994--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-322, as amended by Pub. L. 104-294,
Sec. 604(b)(2), substituted for period at end ``, except that the
sentence of death shall not be imposed unless the jury or, if there is
no jury, the court, further finds that the offense resulted in the
identification by a foreign power (as defined in section 101(a) of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978) of an individual acting
as an agent of the United States and consequently in the death of that
individual, or directly concerned nuclear weaponry, military spacecraft
or satellites, early warning systems, or other means of defense or
retaliation against large-scale attack; war plans; communications
intelligence or cryptographic information; or any other major weapons
system or major element of defense strategy.''
Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 103-359 substituted ``(p)'' for ``(o)'' in
two places.
1988--Subsec. (d)(4). Pub. L. 100-690 substituted ``amounts'' for
``amount''.
1986--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 99-399 added subsec. (d).
1954--Act Sept. 3, 1954, increased the penalty for peacetime
espionage and corrected a deficiency on the sentencing authority by
increasing penalty to death or imprisonment for any term of years.
Effective Date of 1996 Amendment
Amendment by section 604(b)(2) of Pub. L. 104-294 effective Sept.
13, 1994, see section 604(d) of Pub. L. 104-294, set out as a note under
section 13 of this title.
Temporary Extension of Section
Temporary extension of section, see section 798 of this title.
Section 7 of act June 30, 1953, ch. 175, 67 Stat. 133, repealed
Joint Res. July 3, 1952, ch. 570, Sec. 1(a)(29), 66 Stat. 333; Joint
Res. Mar. 31, 1953, ch. 13, Sec. 1, 67 Stat. 18, which had provided that
this section should continue in force until six months after the
termination of the National emergency proclaimed by 1950 Proc. No. 2914
which is set out as a note preceding section 1 of Appendix to Title 50,
War and National Defense.
Section 6 of Joint Res. July 3, 1952, repealed Joint Res. Apr. 14,
1952, ch. 204, 66 Stat. 54, as amended by Joint Res. May 28, 1952, ch.
339, 66 Stat. 96. Intermediate extensions by Joint Res. June 14, 1952,
ch. 437, 66 Stat. 137, and Joint Res. June 30, 1952, ch. 526, 66 Stat.
296, which continued provisions until July 3, 1952, expired by their own
terms.
Indictment for Violating This Section; Limitation Period
Limitation period in connection with indictments for violating this
section, see note set out under section 792 of this title.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 792, 798A, 951, 1717, 1956,
3077, 3239, 3591, 3592, 3681 of this title; title 5 section 8312; title
19 section 1583; title 22 section 2778; title 38 section 6105; title 42
section 2000aa; title 50 App. sections 19, 34, 2410.
