Espionage Act of 1917
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This act made it a crime, punishable by a $10,000 fine and 20 years in jail, for a person to convey false reports or false statements with intent to interfere with the operation or success of the military or naval forces of the United States or to promote the success of its enemies.
The laws were ruled constitutional in the United States Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919).
The law was later extended by the Sedition Act of 1918, which made it illegal even to speak out against the government.
During and after World War I the Espionage Act and the Sedition Act were used in prosecutions that would be considered constitutionally unacceptable in the U.S. even in the political climate after the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack on New York's World Trade Center. While much of the laws were repealed in 1921, major portions of the Espionage Act remain part of U.S. law (18 USC 793, 794) and form the legal basis for most classified information.
The US Congress has enacted other laws to protect specific types of information including:
- cryptographic intelligence and methods - 18 USC 798
- nuclear weapons and materials (Restricted Data) - Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 USC 2162, 2163, 2168, and 7383)
- industrial trade secrets - Industrial Espionage Act of 1996 (18 USC Chapter 90)
- intelligence sources and methods (Wnintel)
- data stored on computers - Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (18 USC 1030) and the Stored Communications Act (18 USC 2701)
See also
- Freedom of Information Act
- Executive Order 12958 Classified National Security Information
- Official Secrets Act (U.K. and others)
External links
- United States Code (USC) (http://assembler.law.cornell.edu/uscode/)
- Full Text of the US Espionage Act (http://www.firstworldwar.com/source/espionageact.htm)