[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2633 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2633

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent the misuse of genuine 
 and counterfeit police badges by those seeking to commit a crime, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 29, 1999

   Mr. Horn (for himself, Mrs. Morella, Mr. Ramstad, Mr. Shows, Mr. 
Barcia, Mr. Holden, Mrs. Kelly, Mr. Inslee, Mr. Visclosky, Mr. Green of 
Texas, Mr. Kolbe, Mr. Luther, Mr. English, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr. 
   Stupak, Ms. Danner, Mr. Ose, Mr. Reyes, Ms. Berkley, and Mr. Gary 
Miller of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent the misuse of genuine 
 and counterfeit police badges by those seeking to commit a crime, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Police Badge Fraud Prevention Act of 
1999''.

SEC. 2. POLICE BADGES.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 33 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 716. Police badges
    ``(a) Whoever--
            ``(1) knowingly transfers, transports, or receives, in 
        interstate or foreign commerce, a counterfeit police badge;
            ``(2) knowingly transfers, in interstate or foreign 
        commerce, a genuine police badge to an individual not 
        authorized to possess it under the law of the place in which 
        the badge is the official badge of the police;
            ``(3) knowingly receives a genuine police badge in a 
        transfer prohibited by paragraph (2); or
            ``(4) being a person not authorized to possess a genuine 
        police badge under the law of the place in which the badge is 
        the official badge of the police, knowingly transports that 
        badge in interstate or foreign commerce;
shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 180 days, 
or both.
    ``(b) It is a defense to a prosecution under this section that the 
badge is used exclusively--
            ``(1) in a collection or exhibit;
            ``(2) for decorative purposes; or
            ``(3) for a dramatic presentation, such as a theatrical, 
        film, or television production.
    ``(c) As used in this section--
            ``(1) the term `genuine police badge' means an official 
        badge issued by public authority to identify an individual as a 
        law enforcement officer having police powers; and
            ``(2) the term `counterfeit police badge' means an item 
        that so resembles a police badge that it would deceive an 
        ordinary individual into believing it was a genuine police 
        badge.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 33 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new item:

``716. Police badges.''.
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