{
  "id": "RL31557",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL31557",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 101361,
      "date": "2002-09-02",
      "retrieved": "2016-05-24T20:05:13.418941",
      "title": "Terrorism and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in Criminal Cases: Recent Developments",
      "summary": "A nation's criminal jurisdiction is usually limited to its own territory. In a surprising number of\ninstances, however, federal criminal law applies abroad to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. The\nUSA PATRIOT Act and legislation implementing treaties on terrorist bombings and on financing\nterrorism enlarge the extent of federal extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction.\n  The USA PATRIOT Act's contributions involve credit cards, money laundering, and the special\nmaritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Congress has enacted laws proscribing\nvarious common law crimes such as murder, robbery, or sexual assaults when committed within the\nspecial maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States,  i.e. , when committed\naboard an\nAmerican vessel or within a federal enclave. Whether federal enclaves in other countries are\nincluded within the special territorial jurisdiction of the United States is a question that divides the\nlower courts. The Act provides that the overseas establishments of federal governmental entities and\nresidences of their staffs are within the special territorial jurisdiction of the United States for\npurposes of crimes committed by or against U.S. nationals.\n  Existing federal law prohibits fraud and other forms of misconduct involving credit cards,\npasswords, and other \"access devices.\" The Act provides a statement of extraterritorial jurisdiction\nwhen the device is that of an America bank or other U.S. entity and the case involves some form of\ntransmission, transportation, or storage in the U.S. It is not clear whether the amendment is intended\nto narrow or simply confirm the prior scope of extraterritorial coverage.\n  The Act's money laundering amendments permit federal prosecution for the overseas\nlaundering of the proceeds of various federal crimes, as well as for the domestic laundering of the\nproceeds of various foreign crimes including foreign political corruption. \n  The legislation implementing the international conventions on terrorist bombings and on\nfinancing terrorism replicates existing federal law in many respects. It becomes fully effective when\nthe conventions enter into force for the United States. At that point, it will authorize federal\nprosecution of overseas bombings or financing terrorism in other countries based solely upon the fact\nthat the United States is able to obtain custody of the offenders.\n  This report appears in an abridged form, stripped of its footnotes and many of its citations to\nauthority, as  CRS Report RS21306(pdf) ,  Terrorism and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in Criminal\nCases:\nRecent Developments in Brief .",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
      "formats": [
        {
          "format": "PDF",
          "encoding": null,
          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/RL31557",
          "sha1": "9cd97233cfa095279481db7ec4d0b7ceab7591d0",
          "filename": "files/20020902_RL31557_9cd97233cfa095279481db7ec4d0b7ceab7591d0.pdf",
          "images": null
        },
        {
          "format": "HTML",
          "filename": "files/20020902_RL31557_9cd97233cfa095279481db7ec4d0b7ceab7591d0.html"
        }
      ],
      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "American Law",
    "Intelligence and National Security"
  ]
}