18 USC 1361: Destruction of Government Property

Under 18 U.S.C. 1361, the destruction of government property is a federal crime that carries up to ten years in prison when the damage exceeds $1,000 and up to one year when it does not. The statute reaches anyone who willfully injures or commits depredation against property belonging to the United States or a federal agency, and it also covers property a private contractor is still building for the government. A conviction brings prison time, fines, mandatory restitution, and a set of collateral consequences that outlast the sentence itself.

What the Law Prohibits

Section 1361 makes it a crime to willfully injure or commit any “depredation” against property of the United States or any federal department or agency. Attempts are punished the same as completed acts, so a person who tries to destroy federal property and fails can face the same charges as someone who succeeds.¹

Courts read “depredation” to mean plundering, pillaging, or laying waste, essentially any act that physically damages or destroys property. Unauthorized use or possession without physical harm does not violate this statute.²

The word “willfully” is doing serious work. This is a specific intent crime. Prosecutors have to prove the defendant acted intentionally and with knowledge that the conduct was unlawful. Accidental damage, carelessness, and even recklessness fall short. Backing a truck into a federal mailbox because you weren’t paying attention is not a Section 1361 offense; the government would have to show you meant to do it.²

What Counts as Federal Property

The statute protects “any property” of the United States, its departments, or its agencies. Courthouses, post offices, military vehicles, and national monuments are the obvious examples. Less obvious ones qualify too: government documents, scientific equipment at a federal research lab, fencing around a federal facility.¹

One provision surprises people. Property a private company is manufacturing or constructing for the federal government falls under Section 1361 even though the government does not yet own it. According to DOJ guidance, title or possession by the United States is not a necessary element when the property was being made for the government.²

The statute covers both real property (land, buildings) and personal property (vehicles, equipment, documents). It requires actual physical harm, not just interference with how something is used.

Prison Time and Fines

The $1,000 damage figure is the line that separates a misdemeanor from a felony:

Damage over $1,000: a felony punishable by up to ten years in federal prison, a fine, or both.
Damage of $1,000 or less: a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail, a fine, or both.

The same thresholds apply to attempts. If the property was not actually harmed, the court looks at what the damage would have been had the attempt succeeded.¹

Under 18 U.S.C. 3559, the felony version is a Class C felony and the misdemeanor version is a Class A misdemeanor.³ Those classifications set the fine ceilings under the general federal fine statute: up to $250,000 for the felony and up to $100,000 for the misdemeanor for an individual. Organizations face higher caps, $500,000 for a felony and $200,000 for a Class A misdemeanor.⁴

Because crossing the $1,000 line changes the exposure from a year to a decade, damage valuation is where these cases are often fought hardest. Courts rely on repair estimates, replacement costs, and expert damage assessments to decide which side of the line a case falls on.

How Judges Calculate the Sentence

Federal judges use the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines to set an advisory range within the statutory maximum. Property destruction under Section 1361 is scored under Guideline Section 2B1.1, which starts at a base offense level of 6.⁵

The level climbs from there according to the amount of loss. Damage over $6,500 adds 2 levels, over $40,000 adds 6 levels, over $250,000 adds 12 levels, and the table continues up to damage exceeding $550 million, which adds 30 levels.

Specific enhancements can push the number higher. Damage caused by explosives is scored under the arson guideline, which is harsher. Destruction targeting a computer system used for national defense or national security adds 2 levels, and causing substantial disruption to critical infrastructure adds 6.⁵ The final offense level is then cross-referenced against the defendant’s criminal history category to produce the recommended sentencing range.

Restitution and Civil Collection

Prison and fines are only part of the bill. Under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act, courts must order restitution whenever a victim, including a federal agency, has suffered financial loss from the offense.⁶ Restitution covers the actual cost to repair or replace what was damaged, labor and materials included. If the property was out of service, the government can also seek compensation for that disruption.

A restitution order is enforced like a civil judgment. The government can place liens on the defendant’s property, and the court can issue an abstract of judgment that attaches to real estate in any state where it is recorded. If a defendant receives an inheritance or legal settlement while incarcerated, those funds must be applied to any outstanding restitution.⁷

Bankruptcy is not an escape. Under 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(13), any payment ordered as restitution under federal criminal law survives a bankruptcy filing.⁸

Separately, the Federal Debt Collection Procedures Act gives the Justice Department its own set of tools, including attachment, garnishment, and judgment liens, and a 10 percent surcharge to cover collection costs.⁹

How Long the Government Has to Charge You

The government has five years from the date of the offense to bring charges under Section 1361. That is the standard federal limitations period for non-capital crimes under 18 U.S.C. 3282.¹⁰ If the indictment or information is not filed within that window, the prosecution is time-barred. If the same conduct also violated a statute with a longer limitations period, that separate charge could still go forward.

Other Federal Statutes That May Apply Instead

Section 1361 is the general-purpose federal property damage statute. Several more targeted laws address particular kinds of destruction, and prosecutors may charge those instead of, or alongside, Section 1361.

Arson on Federal Property

If the damage was caused by fire, 18 U.S.C. 81 applies to arson within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. The penalties are considerably steeper: up to 25 years for burning a building, structure, or vessel, and any term of years or life if the building is a dwelling or a life was put in danger.¹¹ DOJ guidance notes that when government property is destroyed by fire, prosecutors may be required to charge under the arson statute rather than combining more general provisions.¹²

Damage to Communication Systems

Destroying or interfering with federal communication lines, stations, or systems is covered by 18 U.S.C. 1362. It reaches radio, telegraph, telephone, and cable systems operated or controlled by the United States, particularly those used for military or civil defense. The maximum is ten years, the same as a Section 1361 felony, but the statute is broader because it also criminalizes interfering with or delaying transmissions, not just physical destruction.¹³

Destruction of Energy Facilities

Damage to energy production, storage, transmission, or distribution facilities falls under 18 U.S.C. 1366, which carries considerably harsher penalties. Damage over $100,000 or causing significant disruption is punishable by up to 20 years. Damage between $5,000 and $100,000 carries up to five years. If someone dies as a result, the sentence can be any term of years or life.¹⁴

Property Damage in Federal Territories

Section 1363 covers destruction of both public and private property within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. It reaches every property destruction offense in that jurisdiction, so it is broader than Section 1361, which only reaches government property.¹²

Life After a Conviction

A federal property damage conviction reaches into areas of life most defendants do not anticipate at sentencing.

Firearms

A felony conviction under Section 1361 bars the defendant from possessing firearms or ammunition. Under 18 U.S.C. 922(g), anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment is prohibited from shipping, transporting, or possessing firearms. Because the felony version carries up to ten years, the ban applies automatically.¹⁵

Visas and International Travel

The State Department classifies “malicious destruction of property” as a crime involving moral turpitude, which can make a convicted person ineligible for both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas under the Immigration and Nationality Act. A conviction can also block entry into countries that screen for U.S. criminal records and complicate a non-citizen’s ability to remain in or return to the United States. Waivers exist in limited circumstances, such as an offense more than 15 years old with evidence of rehabilitation, but they are discretionary.¹⁶

Trusted Traveler Programs

TSA maintains a list of disqualifying offenses for programs like PreCheck and Global Entry. Section 1361 is not explicitly listed, but TSA reserves broad discretion to deny applicants based on “extensive criminal convictions” or “a conviction for a serious crime not listed.” Arson, an offense that often accompanies federal property damage, is specifically listed as an interim disqualifying offense if the conviction or release from incarceration was within the past five to seven years.¹⁷

Defenses That Come Up Most

The specific intent requirement is the most common battleground. Because the government must prove the defendant acted willfully, a defendant who can show the damage was accidental or that they did not know the property belonged to the government has a real path to acquittal. Defense attorneys regularly challenge whether the evidence establishes willfulness beyond a reasonable doubt.

Mistaken identity comes up often in vandalism and graffiti cases, where the government’s evidence may depend on grainy surveillance footage or inconsistent witness descriptions. If identification is unreliable, the defense can argue reasonable doubt about whether the defendant was even the person who caused the damage.

Challenging the damage valuation can change the outcome dramatically. If the government alleges felony-level damage over $1,000, the defense may hire its own experts to dispute the repair estimates. Pushing the amount under $1,000 does not get the case dismissed, but it converts a potential ten-year felony into a one-year misdemeanor.

Finally, defendants sometimes challenge whether the property qualifies as federal property at all. If the government cannot establish that it owned the property, that an agency controlled it, or that it was being manufactured or constructed for the United States, the charge does not hold. That defense typically involves reviewing property records, contracts, and lease agreements.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1361: Government Property or Contracts
2
Department of Justice Archives. Criminal Resource Manual 1666 – Destruction of Government Property – 18 USC 1361
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 3559 – Sentencing Classification of Offenses
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3571: Sentence of Fine
5
United States Sentencing Commission. USSG 2B1.1 – Larceny, Embezzlement, and Other Forms of Theft; Property Damage or Destruction; Fraud and Deceit
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3663A – Mandatory Restitution to Victims of Certain Crimes
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 3664 – Procedure for Issuance and Enforcement of Order of Restitution
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 523 – Exceptions to Discharge
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC Chapter 176 – Federal Debt Collection Procedure
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3282: Offenses Not Capital
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 81 – Arson Within Special Maritime and Territorial Jurisdiction of the United States
12
United States Department of Justice Archives. Criminal Resource Manual 1672 – Destruction of Government Property – Other Statutes Affected
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 1362 – Communication Lines, Stations or Systems
14
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 1366 – Destruction of an Energy Facility
15
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922: Unlawful Acts
16
Department of State. Foreign Affairs Manual – Ineligibility Based on Criminal Activity, Criminal Convictions and Related Activities – INA 212(a)(2)
17
Transportation Security Administration. Disqualifying Offenses and Other Factors