18 U.S.C. § 12
Section 12 · United States Postal Service defined
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 8 court decisions — leading case Nelson v. United States (1953)
Most recently applied in United States v. Luke Scott, Sr. (October 2023)
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.
As used in this title, the term "Postal Service" means the United States Postal Service established under title 39, and every officer and employee of that Service, whether or not such officer or employee has taken the oath of office.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §§301, 360 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, §§230, 231, 35 Stat. 1134).
This section consolidates sections 301 and 360 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., with necessary changes in phraseology.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
1990—Pub. L. 101–647 substituted "whether or not such officer or employee has taken the oath of office" for "whether he has taken the oath of office".
1970—Pub. L. 91–375 inserted "United States" before "Postal Service" in section catchline and substituted in text as definition of "Postal Service" the United States Postal Service established under title 39, and every officer and employee of that Service, whether he has taken the oath of office, for prior definition which included the Post Office Department and every employee, thereof, whether or not he has taken the oath of office.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date of 1970 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 91–375 effective within 1 year after Aug. 12, 1970, on date established therefor by the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service and published by it in the Federal Register, see section 15(a) of Pub. L. 91–375, set out as an Effective Date note preceding section 101 of Title 39, Postal Service.