# misprision of a felony - US only? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 18, 2015, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715 "2015-09-18T22:19:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/1 "2015-09-18T22:19:03Z")
> **[Joey Meek, friend of Dylann Roof, pleads not guilty to federal charges](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/09/18/joey-meek-friend-of-dylann-roof-charged-in-connection-with-church-shooting/)** > > Meek has been charged with lying to the FBI and concealing knowledge about a crime. COLUMBIA, S.C. — Joey Meek, a friend of admitted Charleston shooter Dylann Roof, on Friday pleaded not guilty to two charges related to the June massacre that left nine people dead at a historic black church. Meek, 21, was charged by a federal grand jury with one count of making false statements to federal officials and one count of “ **misprision of a felony** ,” meaning he concealed knowledge about a crime. I was not aware of either the term or the law before. I also have never heard of anyone prosecuted for not informing to the authorities about a crime they know about - if that is what the law is. From a quick google, it seems that the “misprision” federal offense basically **requires** that there was an affirmative step to conceal the knowledge. Which is what the “false statements to federal officials” already covers. So why prosecute it twice? Also - there are no state laws like that in the US, it seems, and in the Western world only Ireland has something similar. Seems like this kind of law is basically widely rejected. Why would US still have it on the books? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/2 "2015-09-18T22:42:21Z")
Misprison of Felony itself doesn’t require an affirmative step to conceal knowledge. A person commits misprison of felony if he knows that a felony was convicted and doesn’t inform authorities. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/3 "2015-09-18T22:59:13Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > Misprison of Felony itself doesn’t require an affirmative step to conceal knowledge. A person commits misprison of felony if he knows that a felony was convicted and doesn’t inform authorities. [http://law.jrank.org/pages/8605/Misprision.html](http://law.jrank.org/pages/8605/Misprision.html) Under the federal statute, the prosecution must prove the following elements to obtain a misprision of felony conviction: (1) another person actually committed a felony; (2) the defendant knew that the felony was committed; (3) the defendant did not notify any law enforcement or judicial officer; and\*\* (4) the defendant took affirmative steps to conceal the felony. \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/4 "2015-09-18T22:59:28Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > Misprison of Felony itself doesn’t require an affirmative step to conceal knowledge. A person commits misprison of felony if he knows that a felony was convicted and doesn’t inform authorities. I don’t think this is true. [18 U.S. Code § 4 - Misprision of felony](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4) > [@](#): > > Whoever, having knowledge of the actual commission of a felony cognizable by a court of the United States, conceals and does not as soon as possible make known the same to some judge or other person in civil or military authority under the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both. The elements of the crime are: [ol] [li]Having knowledge of the actual commission of a felony cognizable by a court of the United States;[/li][li]conceals and;[/li][li]does not as soon as possible make known the same to some judge or other person in civil or military authority under the United States[/li][/ol] The concealment is a required element. See: [United States v. Johnson, 546 F.2d 1225 (5th Cir. 1977)](http://openjurist.org/546/f2d/1225/united-states-v-johnson) > [@](#): > > The mere failure to report a felony is not sufficient to constitute a violation of 18 U.S.C.A. § 4. ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/5 "2015-09-18T23:15:47Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > The concealment is a required element. So if you find your buddy’s meth stash, you don’t have to turn him in, but you’re not allowed to flush it when the cops knock on the door? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/6 "2015-09-28T17:25:49Z")
Basically. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/7 "2015-09-28T17:34:51Z")
If you’re flushing your buddy’s meth, I’m guessing you’re going to be charged with crimes more serious than misprision. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/8 "2015-09-28T17:40:59Z")
Yes. But you could also be charged with misprision, because one required element is different than those of other crimes (the failure to notify). ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/9 "2015-09-28T17:51:16Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > [Misprision - Further Readings - Crime, Felony, Law, and Court - JRank Articles](http://law.jrank.org/pages/8605/Misprision.html) > > Under the federal statute, the prosecution must prove the following elements to obtain a misprision of felony conviction: (1) another person actually committed a felony; (2) the defendant knew that the felony was committed; (3) the defendant did not notify any law enforcement or judicial officer; and\*\* (4) the defendant took affirmative steps to conceal the felony. > \*\* Here’s an interesting question. What would happen if a defendant took affirmative steps to conceal a felony but also notified an appropriate law enforcement or judicial officer? E.g. defendant calls and reports that someone has been shot and killed at such-and-such location, police report that they are on their way, and then the defendant, in the meantime, plants a decoy weapon at the scene and runs off with the actual murder weapon and buries it in a cornfield a hundred miles away. Clearly they would not be guilty of Misprision of a Felony because even though they took steps to conceal the felony, they did not actually fail to report it, right? ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/10 "2015-09-28T18:16:49Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Also - there are no state laws like that in the US, it seems, and in the Western world only Ireland has something similar. Seems like this kind of law is basically widely rejected. Why would US still have it on the books? Many states have a very similar law called “accessory after the fact,” the elements of which are usually something like: [ul] [li]the accused knew a crime had been committed[/li][li]the accused knew who committed the crime[/li][li]the accused did an act that enabled the guilty party to escape (arrest, trial, or punishment)[/li][/ul] This serves basically the same purpose. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/11 "2015-09-28T18:27:26Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Here’s an interesting question. What would happen if a defendant took affirmative steps to conceal a felony but also notified an appropriate law enforcement or judicial officer? E.g. defendant calls and reports that someone has been shot and killed at such-and-such location, police report that they are on their way, and then the defendant, in the meantime, plants a decoy weapon at the scene and runs off with the actual murder weapon and buries it in a cornfield a hundred miles away. Clearly they would not be guilty of Misprision of a Felony because even though they took steps to conceal the felony, they did not actually fail to report it, right? (Deliberately?) Falsifying evidence or concealing evidence is obstruction. So what did the shooter’s buddy do to misprision the shooting crime? ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/12 "2015-09-28T18:32:01Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Yes. But you could also be charged with misprision, because one required element is different than those of other crimes (the failure to notify). May I ask what level of evidence is needed to convict? Wouldnt it require the testimony of the actual person committing the felony given there are no other witnesses/images? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/13 "2015-09-28T19:01:49Z")
No more so than any other crime where knowing is the level of _mens rea_ required. As always, the jury may infer knowledge from other facts. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/14 "2015-09-28T19:51:13Z")
> [@Mikeisskeptical](#): > > So if you find your buddy’s meth stash, you don’t have to turn him in, but you’re not allowed to flush it when the cops knock on the door? I think it might go a little further than that. Let’s say you find your buddy’s meth stash but simply ignore it. Then a week later, the cops show up and ask you _“Do you know where your friend keeps his meth?”_ and you answer _“Nope, I don’t know anything about it.”_ That might count as concealment because you had the information the police were asking for but you denied it. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/15 "2015-09-28T23:27:25Z")
So, now I’m wondering–suppose you (being an American citizen) somehow stumble across a conspiracy to commit treason against the United States. Being a _good_ citizen, you promptly call the FBI. What–besides the fact that it would be a colossally dickish move on the part of The Powers That Be–would prevent TPTB from charging you with [misprision of treason](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2382) on the grounds that you hadn’t actually disclosed your knowledge to “the President or to some judge of the United States, or to the governor or to some judge or justice of a particular State”? (Or is the obvious fact that such a charge would be colossally dickish sufficient.) I also assume that for [misprision of felony](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4) whichever Special Agent answers the phone at your friendly local FBI field office would count as being a “person in civil or military authority under the United States”. But what if you just call 911? Would the local cops count, or–if it’s a _federal_ felony–are you technically obliged to notify a _federal_ judge or law enforcement agent? ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/16 "2015-09-29T12:35:35Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > (Deliberately?) Falsifying evidence or concealing evidence is obstruction. > > So what did the shooter’s buddy do to misprision the shooting crime? Then, would it be safe to say that Obstruction of Justice is a lesser included offense to Misprision of a Felony? That is, every commission of Misprision of a Felony necessarily includes an act that would, on its own, constitute Obstruction of Justice. > [@MEBuckner](#): > > So, now I’m wondering–suppose you (being an American citizen) somehow stumble across a conspiracy to commit treason against the United States. Being a _good_ citizen, you promptly call the FBI. What–besides the fact that it would be a colossally dickish move on the part of The Powers That Be–would prevent TPTB from charging you with [misprision of treason](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2382) on the grounds that you hadn’t actually disclosed your knowledge to “the President or to some judge of the United States, or to the governor or to some judge or justice of a particular State”? (Or is the obvious fact that such a charge would be colossally dickish sufficient.) > > I also assume that for [misprision of felony](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4) whichever Special Agent answers the phone at your friendly local FBI field office would count as being a “person in civil or military authority under the United States”. But what if you just call 911? Would the local cops count, or–if it’s a _federal_ felony–are you technically obliged to notify a _federal_ judge or law enforcement agent? What if you just put your findings in an email and sent it to [president@whitehouse.gov](mailto:president@whitehouse.gov)? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/17 "2015-09-29T14:20:28Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Then, would it be safe to say that Obstruction of Justice is a lesser included offense to Misprision of a Felony? No. > [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > …you could also be charged with misprision, because one required element is different than those of other crimes (the failure to notify). Lesser included offenses are those in which one element is missing but the elements are otherwise identical. If there is an additional or _different_ element, it is not a lesser included offense. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misprision-of-a-felony-us-only/731715/18 "2015-09-29T15:25:08Z")
> [@MEBuckner](#): > > So, now I’m wondering–suppose you (being an American citizen) somehow stumble across a conspiracy to commit treason against the United States. Being a _good_ citizen, you promptly call the FBI. What–besides the fact that it would be a colossally dickish move on the part of The Powers That Be–would prevent TPTB from charging you with [misprision of treason](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2382) on the grounds that you hadn’t actually disclosed your knowledge to “the President or to some judge of the United States, or to the governor or to some judge or justice of a particular State”? (Or is the obvious fact that such a charge would be colossally dickish sufficient.) > > I also assume that for [misprision of felony](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4) whichever Special Agent answers the phone at your friendly local FBI field office would count as being a “person in civil or military authority under the United States”. But what if you just call 911? Would the local cops count, or–if it’s a _federal_ felony–are you technically obliged to notify a _federal_ judge or law enforcement agent? I think your argument would be that you were working through the proper channels. You gave the information to people who it was reasonable to believe would pass it on to the appropriate authorities.