120 STAT. 3266
PUBLIC LAW 109–437—DEC. 20, 2006
Public Law 109–437 109th Congress An Act Dec. 20, 2006 [S. 1998]
Stolen Valor Act of 2005. 18 USC 1 note.
To amend title 18, United States Code, to enhance protections relating to the reputation and meaning of the Medal of Honor and other military decorations and awards, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stolen Valor Act of 2005’’. 18 USC 704 note.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings: (1) Fraudulent claims surrounding the receipt of the Medal of Honor, the distinguished-service cross, the Navy cross, the Air Force cross, the Purple Heart, and other decorations and medals awarded by the President or the Armed Forces of the United States damage the reputation and meaning of such decorations and medals. (2) Federal law enforcement officers have limited ability to prosecute fraudulent claims of receipt of military decorations and medals. (3) Legislative action is necessary to permit law enforcement officers to protect the reputation and meaning of military decorations and medals. SEC. 3. ENHANCED PROTECTION OF MEANING OF MILITARY DECORATIONS AND MEDALS.
(a) EXPANSION OF GENERAL CRIMINAL OFFENSE.—Subsection (a) of section 704 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘manufactures, or sells’’ and inserting ‘‘purchases, attempts to purchase, solicits for purchase, mails, ships, imports, exports, produces blank certificates of receipt for, manufactures, sells, attempts to sell, advertises for sale, trades, barters, or exchanges for anything of value’’. (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CRIMINAL OFFENSE RELATING TO FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT RECEIPT OF DECORATIONS AND MEDALS.—Such section 704 is further amended— (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c); (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the following: ‘‘(b) FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT RECEIPT OF MILITARY DECORATIONS OR MEDALS.—Whoever falsely represents himself or herself, verbally or in writing, to have been awarded any decoration or medal authorized by Congress for the Armed Forces of the United States, any of the service medals or badges awarded to the members of such forces, the ribbon, button, or rosette of any such badge, decoration,
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