The recent report of rape allegations against illusionist David Copperfield has raised a question. Are crimes committed by Americans on foreign soil subject to the American judicial system? Using the Copperfield situation as an example, reports indicate he is accused of raping a woman in the Bahamas. Yet the FBI is investigating the case. He’s an American citizen and so is the alleged victim, so does that bring it into the jurisdiction of the FBI even though it didn’t, allegedly, happen in the U.S.?
I hadn’t heard of that particular case, but in a general sense no, the country in which the crime was committed has jurisdication regardless of the nationailty of the individual committing the crime, you see it in action often in South East Asia and Australia with drug trafficking.
There was a recent case here in Australia where a US Serviceman (Navy IIRC) was accused of rape while on shore leave, and the case was being handled by local police. The US Navy was asking ever so nicely for him to be turned over to them for action to be taken. I know the government was inclined to say no, wanting to handle it locally, but I never did hear the outcome. Knowing our governments relationship with the US, they probably just waited for the local media to lose interest and then quietly hand him over. :rolleyes:
Found a cite from Wikipedia on the incident (Yes I know the esteem Wikipedia carries 
)
So can a US citizen be put on trial for a crime that was committed outside the country?
Yes. At least in some cases. There are laws specifically aimed at “sex tourism” that the US will bust you for upon returning to the US (cite).
That said you will not get arrested for, say, smoking pot while you were in Amsterdam or visiting an adult prostitute while there so I am not sure how far such things extend (perhaps you could be and they just never bother…I dunno).
The example above of a member of the US Navy committing a crime leaves something out. The Uniform Code of Military Justice (a code of US Federal Law) applies to the member regardless of his whereabouts.
I was under the impression that the US had, like Canada does, “sex tourism” laws for which they can try their citizens who go abroad for the purpose of engaging in sex with minors. Is that the case?
Also, when U.S. military personel are involved, the Status of Forces agreement, w/ the country in question, often addresses legal jurisdiction. The majority of crimes committed by U.S. military personel are lesser crimes and the host country is happy not having to deal w/ them, although some more serious crimes become political footballs and cause the host country to dispute the SoF.
Very few laws are extraterritorial. The most famous in the British Espionage Act which makes it a crime for two Russians in Moscow to plot to spy on the British. Some nations do have sex tourism laws, I do not know if the Americans have one.
I find such laws to be an insult to the sovereignty of other nations. If what you do in Thailand is legal there, why is it a crime elsewhere? Why is it (say) America’s business?
Here are some links to previous discussions:
Can you be prosecuted for a US crime committed in another country?
Risks of sex tourism in Thailand
And a staff report about extra-territorial jurisdiction:
In international waters, are you beyond the reach of the law?
And a recent thread on a semi-related topic: What would happen if an American assassinated a foreign leader?
One caveat about this. If I, as an American citizen living in Canada were to file a false US tax return while living here, it would certainly violate US law and they could ask Canada to extradite me. Incidentally, the US is one of a very few countries that tries to tax foreign-earned income of US citizens living abroad. It is a royal pain to file a return (especially with my wife’s business income) and, Canadian taxes being considerably higher, I am never actually liable to pay any tax.
I don’t know the particulars of this case, but it could also be that a) the FBI is investigating at the behest of a small nation that does not have the resources to do so, or b) the FBI is investigating in order to allow a court to decide whether or not there is sufficient merit to the case to have him deported. YMMV.
Judging from this FOX News article, Bahamas authorities haven’t yet factored into this situation at all.
You have two American citizens, one of whom claims to be a victim outside the boundaries of the US, but who waits to get home to Seattle before notifying police. Seattle police certainly don’t have jurisdiction; who else but the Feds even could, in order to get the investigation under way?
I’m sure they could always ask the cooperation of the Bahamian police if need be, since the FBI does have a legal attache sub-office in Nassau. See this page: http://www.fbi.gov/contact/legat/legat.htm
Glad to hear that they go after those evil pirates, slave runners, and … illegal broadcasters?
Must be those strange stations that broadcast series of numbers in Spanish that William Poundstone talks about.
A pretty badass bunch of broadcasters to be thrown with the rest of the lot.
A lot of the cop speak here - and more so in recent years - seems to have the alleged crime itself so important for the speaker not to get wrong that it remains outside of normal grammar, so instead of, “a male person was charged with breaking and entering, theft, and resisting arrest”, it will be “a male person was charged with break, enter, and steal, and resist arrest.”
In addition to what has already been said, the U.S. has a fair number of extradition treaties to handle this very situation. That is to say, we send them theirs, and they send us ours. You’ll notice the Bahamas does indeed have an extradition teaty with the U.S.
As U.S. jurisdiction arises by treaty, it is no insult to the foreign state’s sovereignity. However, it some circumstances one nation refuses to extradite, and international relations are strained. For more on that, Extradition - Wikipedia .
Aaagh. Posted in the wrong thread. Apologies.
This came up in the comments thread on the staff report, back when I still had all of the books. Here is what I said then:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=7424872&postcount=10
Japan and America run into issues with this, especially for cases of rape, which become huge media events. The US has agreed to informally modify the SoF for serious crimes.
Isn’t there a concern that the Japanese criminal justice system does not meet American standards of fairness? See Confess and be done with it.