9-64.000
PROTECTION OF GOVERNMENT FUNCTIONSCOUNTERFEITING, POSTAL VIOLATIONS,
FALSE PERSONATION AND FALSE IDENTIFICATION
|
9-64.111
| Counterfeiting18 U.S.C. § 489Prosecution Policy
|
9-64.133
| Prosecution Policy18 U.S.C. § 495 or § 510
|
9-64.134
| Prosecution PolicyInterspousal Forgery of Government Checks
|
9-64.200
| Postal Offenses
|
9-64.300
| False Personation
|
9-64.400
| False Identification18 U.S.C. § 1028
|
|
9-64.111
Counterfeiting18 U.S.C. § 489Prosecution Policy
Sections 489 and 475 of Title 18 are in essence copyright
statutes. However, in the past the Department has sought to limit
their applicationto avoid a multitude of prosecutions for trivial
violations. Prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 489 has been
limited to those instances in which the token or device in question
has some potential for being mistaken for a genuine coin by the
ignorant or unwary. In this regard, the Department and Secret
Service have agreed that no prosecution should be undertaken under
18 U.S.C. § 489 for a token or device which is more than
twice the size of a silver dollar or less than half the size of a
dime. In gauging whether a token or device which is more than half
the size of a dime but less than the size of a silver dollar is
appropriate for prosecution, the additional factors of color and
design should be closely scrutinized. The Fraud Section of the
Criminal Division has supervisory authority over these statutes.
The following sections of the Criminal Resource Manual contain
additional information related to counterfeiting prosecutions under
18 U.S.C. § 478 or 18 U.S.C. § 489: | | |
9-64.133
Prosecution Policy18 U.S.C. § 495 or § 510
Since the enactment of 18 U.S.C. § 510, it has been
the position of the Criminal Division that 18 U.S.C.
§ 510 merely supplements 18 U.S.C. § 495 and
that it was neither drafted by the Department nor enacted by the
Congress for the purpose of repealing 18 U.S.C. § 495. As
a result, in cases in which criminal activities have fallen under
the proscription of 18 U.S.C. §§ 495 and 510, the
Criminal Division has advised that the case may be prosecuted under
either statute.
Prosecutive decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis in
accordance with the requirements of the particular case and
Department policy. Thus, for example, a forgery of a Treasury check
with a face value under $500, while prosecutable as a misdemeanor
under 18 U.S.C. § 510(c), could nevertheless be
prosecuted as a felony under 18 U.S.C. § 495 if the
defendant is a repeat offender or involved in ring activity. A case
involving the forgery of several instruments exceeding $500 in
aggregate value could be brought under the misdemeanor provision of
18 U.S.C. § 510(c) if the facts warrant (by not including
all the instruments in the charge), or if brought under 18 U.S.C.
§ 495 or § 510(a), could be plea negotiated to a
misdemeanor under 18 U.S.C. § 510(c). As a general rule,
however, when the choice is between charging under the felony
provisions of either 18 U.S.C. § 495 or § 510, the
Criminal Division prefers charging under 18 U.S.C. § 510
because of the greater penalties available for violations of that
section.
The primary thrust of the Department's enforcement program
under 18 U.S.C. §§ 495 and 510 is aimed at the
organized rings of check forgers and the professional forger who
engages in multiple and repeated violations. Efforts should be made
to obtain state or local prosecution of persons who engage in a
relatively small number of forgeries and who have no prior history
of this type of criminal conduct. The Fraud Section, Criminal
Division, has supervisory authority over these statutes.
For additional information relating to prosecutions under 18
U.S.C. § 495 and 18 U.S.C. § 510, see the following
sections of the Criminal Resource Manual: | | |