1996 US Code
Title 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I - CRIMES
CHAPTER 107 - SEAMEN AND STOWAWAYS
Sec. 2191 - Cruelty to seamen

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§2191. Cruelty to seamen

Whoever, being the master or officer of a vessel of the United States, on the high seas, or on any other waters within the admiralty and maritime jurisdiction of the United States, flogs, beats, wounds, or without justifiable cause, imprisons any of the crew of such vessel, or withholds from them suitable food and nourishment, or inflicts upon them any corporal or other cruel and unusual punishment, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 800; Oct. 11, 1996, Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, §601(a)(8), 110 Stat. 3498.)

Historical and Revision Notes

Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §482 and section 712 of title 46, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Shipping (Dec. 21, 1898, ch. 28, §22, 30 Stat. 761; Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, §291, 35 Stat. 1145).

Section consolidates section 482 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., and the following language from section 712 of title 46, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Shipping, prohibiting flogging and corporal punishment: “and any master or other officer thereof who shall violate the aforesaid provisions of this section, or either thereof, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for not less than three months nor more than two years.” That language was the basis for the addition of the word “flogs” and the words “any corporal or other” for the word “any.” The punishment imposed by section 482 was adopted as that was the later statute as incorporated in 1909 Criminal Code.

Words “shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor,” contained in said section 712 of title 46, were omitted in view of definitive section 1 of this title.

Minor changes were made in phraseology.

Amendments

1996—Pub. L. 104–294 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than ,000”.

Cross References

Complaint as to provisions or water, see sections 10902, 10907 of Title 46, Shipping.

Corporal punishment prohibited; duty to surrender guilty officer; civil liability, see section 11507 of Title 46.

Neglect to provide sufficient stores, penalty for, see sections 10321, 11106 of Title 46.

Penalty for failure to keep medicines, see section 11102 of Title 46.

Recovery for injury to or death of seaman, see section 688 of Title 46, Appendix.

Scale of provisions to be allowed and served out to the crew during the voyage, see section 10303 of Title 46.

Surrendering officer inflicting corporal punishment, liability of master, see section 11507 of Title 46.

Wages on justifiable complaint of seaman, see section 11106 of Title 46.

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in title 46 section 11507.