Since the enactment of 18 U.S.C. § 510, it has been the position of the Criminal Division that 18 U.S.C. § 510 merely supplements 18 U.S.C. § 495 and that it was neither drafted by the Department nor enacted by the Congress for the purpose of repealing 18 U.S.C. § 495. As a result, in cases in which criminal activities have fallen under the proscription of 18 U.S.C. §§ 495 and 510, the Criminal Division has advised that the case may be prosecuted under either statute.

Prosecutive decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the requirements of the particular case and Department policy. Thus, for example, a forgery of a Treasury check with a face value under $500, while prosecutable as a misdemeanor under 18 U.S.C. § 510(c), could nevertheless be prosecuted as a felony under 18 U.S.C. § 495 if the defendant is a repeat offender or involved in ring activity. A case involving the forgery of several instruments exceeding $500 in aggregate value could be brought under the misdemeanor provision of 18 U.S.C. § 510(c) if the facts warrant (by not including all the instruments in the charge), or if brought under 18 U.S.C. § 495 or § 510(a), could be plea negotiated to a misdemeanor under 18 U.S.C. § 510(c). As a general rule, however, when the choice is between charging under the felony provisions of either 18 U.S.C. § 495 or § 510, the Criminal Division prefers charging under 18 U.S.C. § 510 because of the greater penalties available for violations of that section.

The primary thrust of the Department's enforcement program under 18 U.S.C. §§ 495 and 510 is aimed at the organized rings of check forgers and the professional forger who engages in multiple and repeated violations. Efforts should be made to obtain state or local prosecution of persons who engage in a relatively small number of forgeries and who have no prior history of this type of criminal conduct. The Fraud Section, Criminal Division, has supervisory authority over these statutes.

[updated January 2020]