The United States Code specifically addresses crimes related to civil rights in Chapter 13 of Title 18. Under this chapter, discriminatory acts based on membership or perceived membership in several different protected classes are criminalized.

The first act criminalized under Chapter 13 is conspiracy against rights, codified in 18 U.S.C. §241. Under this section, it is punishable by up to ten years in prison, or up to life or the death penalty if the offense is aggravated, for two or more persons to conspire to threaten, intimidate, oppress, or otherwise prevent the free exercise of any person’s right or privilege protected by the United States Constitution or laws. Aggravating factors include kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or attempts to kill. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a §241 conviction in United States v. Cochran, 682 F. App'x 828 (11th Cir. 2017). In Cochran, the defendant, a former judge, had sexually propositioned a woman. When the defendant was publicly exposed for his propositions during a reelection campaign, he conspired with another person to plant methamphetamine on the woman’s car, tipping off police officers and encouraging them to arrest her. The Court found that the conspiracy violated the woman’s right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure, therefore violating her Constitutional protections under §241.

18 U.S.C. §242 prohibits the deprivation of rights under the color of law. Broadly, the section criminalizes using the color of any law, statute, ordinance, religion, or custom to deprive the rights, privileges, or immunities of another, as protected by the Constitution or other United States laws. The section also prohibits subjecting another person, due to their race, color, or citizenship, to a harsher punishment or penalty than the prescribed punishment for a citizen. Offenders face up to one year in prison. If the offense is committed with the use of a dangerous weapon, or bodily injury results, the sentence can reach up to ten years in prison. If the offense causes death, or involved kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill the victim, the offender faces up to life in prison, or the death penalty. In United States v. Hill, 99 F.4th 1289 (11th Cir. 2024), the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a conviction under §242, strengthening the principle that “[n]o man is above the law and no man is below it.” In Hill, the defendant, a former Sheriff, was convicted by a jury of violating the constitutional right of detainees to be free from excessive force. The defendant purchased restraint chairs for use in the county jail and used the chairs about 600 times as “preventative measures,” leaving detainees restrained for “at least four hours.” Detainees restrained in the chair suffered injuries to their wrists, which was sufficient to meet the “bodily injury” requirement to increase the associated sentence. The Court affirmed all six counts of the defendant’s convictions.

Reflecting the chapter’s broad goals in protecting rights guaranteed by the Constitution and other United States laws, 18 U.S.C. §245 prohibits interference with federally protected activities. This section covers several broad types of offense. First, the statute prevents interfering with a person’s right to vote, participation in United States benefits or programs, application for employment, service in a jury, or participation in any program receiving Federal funding. The section also expressly addresses race, prohibiting the use of threats or other interference against a person because of race, color, religion, or national origin, related to enrollment or attendance at a public school or college, participation in any State program or receipt of State benefits, application for employment, service on a jury, travel by use of interstate commerce, or enjoyment of goods and accommodations from lodging businesses and public facilities. Although the statute directly criminalizes these actions in relation to race, the protections expressly extend to discrimination on other bases. §254 offenses follow the same sentencing structure as §242 offenses, with the maximum sentence being up to one year in prison. If bodily injury results, or a dangerous weapon is used, the associated sentence rises to up to ten years, and further rises to life imprisonment or the death penalty if the acts involved kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.

18 U.S.C §247 provides explicit protection on religious grounds, criminalizing both damage to religious property and obstruction of persons in the free exercise of their beliefs. If an offense in either category causes death, or involves acts of kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or attempt to kill, the offender may be sentences to up to life in prison, or be sentenced to death. If the act causes bodily injury, and the offense involves use of fire or explosives, the maximum sentence is 40 years’ imprisonment. If the bodily injury is caused by use or attempted use of any dangerous weapon, the maximum sentence is 20 years’ imprisonment. If the offense does not cause bodily harm but causes damage or destruction to property in an amount exceeding $5,000, the maximum sentence is three years’ imprisonment. In all other cases, the maximum sentence is one year in prison.

Although other crimes under Chapter 13 incorporate bias involving race, color, religion, national origin, and other protected characteristics, 18 U.S.C. §249 directly criminalizes hate crimes as a broad category. Notably, protection from hate crimes is not limited to actual members of any protected class but extends to perceived membership as well. “Hate crimes” encompasses a variety of offenses, beginning with willfully causing body injury to a person, or attempting to do so through use of a firearm, because of that person’s race, color, religion, or national origin. Any such offense is punishable by up to ten years in prison, or as much as life imprisonment if the offense causes death or involves kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill. Additional offenses occur under certain sets of described circumstances. These circumstances apply when the conduct occurs in connection to interstate travel of either the defendant or the victim or using a channel of interstate or foreign commerce; when the defendant uses a channel of interstate or foreign commerce in connection with their conduct; when the defendant uses a firearm, dangerous weapon, or other weapon that traveled in interstate or foreign commerce during the offense; or when the conduct involves interstate commerce. When any of these circumstances apply, and the defendant willfully causes bodily injury, or uses a weapon to attempt to cause bodily injury to, another person because of religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability, the defendant faces up to ten years in prison. Offenders can be sentenced for up to life in prison if the conduct causes death or involves kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill. Finally, the statute specifically addresses lynching, providing a maximum sentence for thirty years if death or serious bodily injury results.

In United States v. Lashley, No. 23-10471, 2023 WL 8253883 (11th Cir. Nov. 29, 2023), the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a 36-month prison sentence imposed for a hate crime in violation of §249. The defendant willfully caused injury to a man because of his actual and perceived race. He verbally and physically assaulted the man, eventually through use of a weapon, causing physical injury. Under the United States Sentencing Guidelines Manual §2H1.1(a)(2), the advisory sentencing range was 12 to 18 months of imprisonment. The district court found that the Guidelines did not sufficiently reflect the severity of the hate crime. The attack was brazen, and all motivations were related to the victim’s race. The district court, considering these factors, decided to sentence more than the advisory range, sentencing the defendant to 36 months of imprisonment. On appeal, the Eleventh Circuit found that the district court had sufficiently justified the decision to sentence outside of the guidelines and was in its discretion to do so. Accordingly, the sentence was affirmed. Lashley highlights the relationship between the Constitution and discriminatory abuse of police power, recognizing the severe nature of offenses involving such abuses.

Many civil rights offenses are tied to membership in a protected class, but others are linked to protected actions. 18 U.S.C. §248 provides for freedom of access to clinic entrances. When a person uses force or physical obstruction to injury, intimidate, or interfere with a person attempting to obtain to provide reproductive services or a person lawfully exercising the First Amendment Right to religious freedom at a place of worship, they are subject to penalties. The same penalties apply when a person intentionally damages or destroys the property of a place providing reproductive health services or a place of religious worship. In either case, a first offense is punishable by up to one year in prison, with subsequent offenses punishable by up to three years in prison. The sentence is reduced for offenses that are strictly nonviolent and only involve physical obstruction. In such cases, the first offense is punishable by up to six months in prison and up to $10,000 in fines, with subsequent offenses punishable by up to 18 months in prison and up to $25,000 in fines. Civil remedies are also available under the section, with statutory damages of up to $5,000 per violation, with punitive damages and injunctive relief available.

Chapter 13 also prohibits several actions. Under 18 U.S.C. §243, it is unlawful to exclude jurors based on race or color. §243 offenses are punishable by up to $5,000 in fines. Under §244, an offender shall be fined under the title for discriminating against a person wearing an armed service uniform. Finally, §246 prohibits depriving any person of employment, compensation, or other benefits provided for by any Act of Congress for work relief or relief purposes because of that person’s race, color, sex, religion, national origin, or political affiliation. §246 offenses are punishable by up to one year in prison.

If any civil rights offense involves sexual misconduct, the penalties are prescribed by 18 U.S.C. §250. The penalties also apply to sexual misconduct arising from an offense under the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. §3631). When a civil rights offense involves aggravated sexual abuse, or attempts to do so, the offender faces up to life in prison. The same penalty applies when the offense involves abusive sexual contact of a child younger than 16 years old. Offenses involving other sexual acts are punishable by up to 40 years in prison. Offenses involving abusive sexual contact are separated into three categories. If the conduct involves a sexual act of aggravated sexual abuse, the maximum prison sentence is 10 years, which increases to 30 years for offenses involving a child under the age of 12. If the conduct involves a sexual act of sexual abuse, the maximum sentence is three years in prison, which increases to 20 years if the offense involves a child under the age of 12. If the conduct involved abusive sexual contact with a minor or ward, the maximum prison sentence is two years, which increases to ten years if the offense involves a child under the age of 12.

If you have a Federal Criminal case, a State Criminal case, a Municipal Case or a Family Law case in the Northern District of Alabama, Middle District of Alabama, Southern District of Alabama, or any federal jurisdiction in the Eleventh Circuit, including Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, contact Joe Ingram or Joe Ingram Law LLC at 205-335-2640. Get Relief * Get Results.