II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1728 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a criminal offense relating 

to fraudulent claims about military service. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 18, 2011 

Mr. BROWN of Massachusetts introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a criminal offense relating to fraudulent claims about military 

service. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stolen Valor Act of 

5 2011’’. 


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•S 1728 IS

1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF CRIMINAL OFFENSE RELATING 

2 TO CERTAIN MISREPRESENTATIONS ABOUT 

3 MILITARY SERVICE. 

4 (a) MISREPRESENTATIONS ABOUT MILITARY SERV5 ICE.—Chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘§ 1041. Certain misrepresentations about military 

8 service. 

9 ‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—Whoever, with intent to obtain any10 thing of value, knowingly makes a misrepresentation re11 garding his or her military service, shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) if the misrepresentation is that such indi13 vidual served in a combat zone, served in a special 

14 operations force, or was awarded the Congressional 

15 Medal of Honor, be fined under this title, impris16 oned not more than 1 year, or both; and 

17 ‘‘(2) in any other case, be fined under this title, 

18 imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both. 

19 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR DENIAL OF SERVICE.—Sub20 section (a) does not apply to a misrepresentation that an 

21 individual did not serve in the Armed Forces of the United 

22 States. 

23 ‘‘(c) DEFENSE.—It is a defense to a prosecution 

24 under this section if the thing of value is de minimis. 

25 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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•S 1728 IS

1 ‘‘(1) ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED

2 STATES.—The term ‘Armed Forces of the United 

3 States’ means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine 

4 Corps, and Coast Guard, including the reserve com5 ponents named in section 10101 of title 10. 

6 ‘‘(2) COMBAT ZONE.—The term ‘combat zone’ 

7 has the meaning given such term in section 

8 112(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

9 ‘‘(3) CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR.—The 

10 term ‘Congressional Medal of Honor’ has the mean11 ing given such term in section 704 of this title. 

12 ‘‘(4) MILITARY SERVICE.—The term ‘military 

13 service’ means— 

14 ‘‘(A) service in the Armed Forces of the 

15 United States; 

16 ‘‘(B) service in a combat zone as a member 

17 of the Armed Forces of the United States; 

18 ‘‘(C) attainment of a specific rank in the 

19 Armed Forces of the United States; and 

20 ‘‘(D) receipt of— 

21 ‘‘(i) any decoration or medal author22 ized by Congress for the Armed Forces of 

23 the United States; 


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•S 1728 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) any of the service medals or 

2 badges awarded to members of such forces; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(iii) the ribbon, button, or rosette of 

5 any such badge, decoration, or medal. 

6 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCE.—The term 

7 ‘special operations force’ has the meaning given such 

8 term in section 167(i) of title 10.’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 704 of 

10 title 18, United States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) by striking subsection (b); 

12 (2) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

13 subsections (b) and (c), respectively; 

14 (3) in subsection (b)(1), as redesignated by 

15 paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or (b)’’; and 

16 (4) in subsection (c), as redesignated by para17 graph (2), by striking ‘‘or (b)’’. 

18 SEC. 3. CLERICAL AMENDMENT. 

19 The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 47 

20 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

21 the end the following new item: 

‘‘1041. Certain misrepresentations about military service.’’. 

Æ 


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