10 U.S.C. § 917
Section 917 · Art. 117. Provoking speeches or gestures
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 23 court decisions — leading case United States v. Richardson (1979)
Most recently applied in United States v. Killion (April 2016)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Any person subject to this chapter who uses provoking or reproachful words or gestures towards any other person subject to this chapter shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Cross References
Article to be explained, see section 937 of this title.