18 U.S.C. § 1582
Section 1582 · Vessels for slave trade
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 3 court decisions — leading case 83 F. Supp. 2d 1307 - United States v. Complex MacHine Works Co. (1999)
Most recently applied in United States v. All Assets Held at Bank Julius Baer & Co. (July 2008)
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, whether as master, factor, or owner, builds, fits out, equips, loads, or otherwise prepares or sends away any vessel, in any port or place within the United States, or causes such vessel to sail from any such port or place, for the purpose of procuring any person from any foreign kingdom or country to be transported and held, sold, or otherwise disposed of as a slave, or held to service or labor, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than seven years, or both.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §424 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, §249, 35 Stat. 1139).
Words “within the United States” were substituted for “within the jurisdiction of the United States”. See section 5 of this title defining “United States”.
Provision for division of the fine and its recovery by private person was omitted. (See reviser's note under section 1585 of this title.)
Mandatory-punishment provisions were rephrased in the alternative.
Minor changes were made in phraseology.
Amendments
1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $5,000”.
Cross References
Slavery abolished, see Const. Amend. 13.