Skip to main content

U.S. Attorneys' Manual

This is archived content from the U.S. Department of Justice website. The information here may be outdated and links may no longer function. Please contact webmaster@usdoj.gov if you have any questions about the archive site.

U.S. Attorneys' Manual
Criminal Resource Manual

1535. Killing The President -- 18 U.S.C. 1751(a)

In 1982, the coverage of 18 U.S.C. § 1751 was expanded to include senior members of the Presidential and Vice Presidential staffs, defined to include persons appointed under 3 U.S.C. §§ 105(a)(2)(A) and 106(a)(1)(A). The number of appointees in these positions is limited to a total of 30 persons. See H.R. Rep. 97-803, 97th Cong., 2d Sess. 4 (1982). In determining whether a Presidential or Vice-Presidential staff member is a protected person under § 1751, the Terrorism and Violent Crime Section of the Criminal Division (TVCS) (202) 514-0849 should be contacted to verify whether the person was appointed under section 105(a)(2)(A) and 106(a)(1)(A) of Title 3, United States Code. The government need not prove that the defendant knew the victim of the offense was an official protected by this section. The statute specifically contemplates the assertion of extraterritorial jurisdiction.

[cited in USAM 9-65.300]