Penalties under 18 U.S.C. § 844 run from up to one year in prison for minor regulatory violations to the death penalty when a bombing or arson kills someone. The statute breaks federal explosives and arson offenses into separate subsections, and each one carries its own sentencing range, mandatory minimum, and fine exposure. The gap between a regulatory misdemeanor and a fatal bombing charge is enormous, so the subsection that applies matters as much as the conduct itself.
Destroying Federal or Federally Funded Property
Subsection (f) covers maliciously using fire or an explosive to damage or destroy property that the federal government owns, possesses, or leases, as well as property of any institution or organization receiving federal financial assistance.1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 18 USC 844 – Penalties That pulls in universities, hospitals, and nonprofits funded by federal grants, not just government buildings.
Sentencing runs on three tiers based on harm:
- No injury: 5 to 20 years in federal prison, a fine, or both.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties
- Personal injury, including injury to a public safety officer: 7 to 40 years, a fine, or both.1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 18 USC 844 – Penalties
- Death: a minimum of 20 years, life imprisonment, or the death penalty.1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 18 USC 844 – Penalties
The five-year floor for the base offense means probation is not on the table, even when no one is hurt.
Destroying Property Used in Interstate Commerce
Subsection (i) reaches fire or explosive damage to any property used in interstate or foreign commerce, or in any activity affecting interstate commerce.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties This is the provision that brings private businesses, rental properties, and other commercial buildings within federal reach when they might otherwise look like local arson cases.
The penalty tiers match subsection (f): 5 to 20 years for property damage alone, 7 to 40 years when someone is injured, and up to the death penalty when someone is killed.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties The same 5-year mandatory minimum applies.
Transporting Explosives With Intent to Harm
Subsection (d) criminalizes transporting or receiving explosives across state or national borders when the person knows or intends the explosives will be used to kill, injure, intimidate, or unlawfully destroy property.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties The intent attaches to the planned use, so a driver who moves explosives knowing they will be used in an attack is covered even if someone else will detonate them.3Ninth Circuit District & Bankruptcy Courts. Manual of Model Criminal Jury Instructions – 14.28 Transportation of an Explosive or Attempted Transportation of an Explosive (18 USC 844(d))
Unlike the arson provisions, subsection (d) has no mandatory minimum. The tiers are:
- No injury: up to 10 years, a fine, or both.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties
- Personal injury: up to 20 years, a fine, or both.
- Death: any term of years, life imprisonment, or the death penalty.
Bomb Threats and False Reports
Subsection (e) does not require any actual explosive. Anyone who uses the mail, telephone, internet, or any other means of interstate communication to threaten a bombing, or who knowingly transmits false information about an alleged attempt to bomb or burn property, faces up to 10 years in federal prison.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties A threat does not have to be credible or specific to trigger the offense; it must be made willfully over an interstate channel. For false reports, prosecutors must show the person knew the information was false.
Using Fire or an Explosive During Another Federal Felony
Subsection (h) is a sentence enhancer, not a standalone charge. When a person uses fire or an explosive to commit any federal felony, or carries an explosive during any federal felony, the court adds a mandatory 10 years on top of the sentence for the underlying offense. A second or subsequent conviction under this subsection doubles the add-on to 20 years.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 844 – Penalties
Three features sharpen the impact. The add-on must run consecutively to the underlying sentence, not concurrently. Probation and suspended sentences are prohibited. And the enhancement applies even when the underlying felony already carries its own enhancement for using a dangerous weapon, so the 10 years stacks on top.
Licensing and Regulatory Violations
Subsections (a) and (b) handle violations of the federal explosives licensing and regulatory framework in 18 U.S.C. § 842, which controls who can buy, sell, store, and transport commercial explosives.1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 18 USC 844 – Penalties Penalties depend on the type of violation:
- Major regulatory violations, such as dealing in explosives without a license, selling to prohibited persons, or manufacturing without authorization: up to 10 years, a fine, or both.
- Providing explosives to someone planning a federal crime of violence: up to 20 years.
- Other regulatory violations: misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in prison, a fine, or both.
Fines That Apply Across the Statute
Every subsection authorizes a fine “under this title,” which routes through the general federal fine statute at 18 U.S.C. § 3571. For an individual convicted of a felony, the fine cap is $250,000. For an organization, it is $500,000. Misdemeanor violations cap at $100,000 for individuals and $200,000 for organizations.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3571 – Sentence of Fine
Those caps can be exceeded. When the offense caused financial loss to someone or produced a financial gain for the defendant, the court can impose a fine of up to twice the gross gain or twice the gross loss, whichever is greater.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3571 – Sentence of Fine An arson-for-insurance-fraud scheme with a large payout can produce fines well above the standard felony ceiling.
What Counts as an Explosive
The reach of these penalties depends on what qualifies as an “explosive,” and the statutory definition in subsection (j) is broad. It covers gunpowders, blasting powders, all forms of high explosives, blasting materials, detonators, smokeless powders, and any incendiary device.5Legal Information Institute. 18 USC 844(j) – Definition of Explosive It also captures any chemical compound or mechanical mixture whose ingredients can cause an explosion when ignited by fire, friction, or impact, which is wide enough to include improvised devices built from commercially available materials.