18 U.S.C. § 1343
Section 1343 · Fraud by wire, radio, or television
Amended 7 times on record
Applied in 4,781 court decisions — leading case Morrison v. National Australia Bank Ltd. (2010)
Most recently applied in In Re: Wanda Vázquez Garced (March 2026)
Applied most in the Ninth Circuit Circuit (313 decisions)
Cases citing this section usually also cite 18 U.S.C. § 1341 · 18 U.S.C. § 371 · 18 U.S.C. § 1962
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.
Whoever, having devised or intending to devise any scheme or artifice to defraud, or for obtaining money or property by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises, transmits or causes to be transmitted by means of wire, radio, or television communication in interstate or foreign commerce, any writings, signs, signals, pictures, or sounds for the purpose of executing such scheme or artifice, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both. If the violation occurs in relation to, or involving any benefit authorized, transported, transmitted, transferred, disbursed, or paid in connection with, a presidentially declared major disaster or emergency (as those terms are defined in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122)), or affects a financial institution, such person shall be fined not more than $1,000,000 or imprisoned not more than 30 years, or both.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Amendments
2008—Pub. L. 110–179 inserted “occurs in relation to, or involving any benefit authorized, transported, transmitted, transferred, disbursed, or paid in connection with, a presidentially declared major disaster or emergency (as those terms are defined in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122)), or” after “If the violation”.
2002—Pub. L. 107–204 substituted “20 years” for “five years”.
1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $1,000”.
1990—Pub. L. 101–647 substituted “30” for “20” before “years”.
1989—Pub. L. 101–73 inserted at end “If the violation affects a financial institution, such person shall be fined not more than $1,000,000 or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both.”
1956—Act July 11, 1956, substituted “transmitted by means of wire, radio, or television communication in interstate or foreign commerce” for “transmitted by means of interstate wire, radio, or television communication”.