II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1998 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to enhance protections relating 

to the reputation and meaning of the Medal of Honor and other military 

decorations and awards, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 10, 2005 

Mr. CONRAD (for himself, Mr. VITTER, Mr. SALAZAR, Mr. NELSON of Nebraska, Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Mr. THUNE, Mr. HAGEL, Mr. 

ISAKSON, Mr. LAUTENBERG, and Mrs. DOLE) 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 enhance protections relating to the reputation and meaning of the 

Medal of Honor and other military decorations and 

awards, and for other purposes. 

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 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 
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1 (1) Fraudulent claims surrounding the receipt 

2 of the Medal of Honor, the distinguished-service 

3 cross, the Navy cross, the Air Force cross, the Pur4 ple Heart, and other decorations and medals award5 ed by the President or the Armed Forces of the 

6 United States damage the reputation and meaning 

7 of such decorations and medals. 

8 (2) Federal law enforcement officers have lim9 ited ability to prosecute fraudulent claims of receipt 

10 of military decorations and medals. 

11 (3) Legislative action is necessary to permit law 

12 enforcement officers to protect the reputation and 

13 meaning of military decorations and medals. 

14 SEC. 3. ENHANCED PROTECTION OF MEANING OF MILI15 TARY DECORATIONS AND MEDALS. 

16 (a) EXPANSION OF GENERAL CRIMINAL OFFENSE.— 

17 Subsection (a) of section 704 of title 18, United States 

18 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘manufactures, or sells’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘purchases, attempts to purchase, solicits for 

20 purchase, mails, ships, imports, exports, produces blank 

21 certificates of receipt for, manufactures, sells, attempts to 

22 sell, advertises for sale, trades, barters, or exchanges for 

23 anything of value’’. 
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1 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CRIMINAL OFFENSE RELAT2 ING TO FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT RECEIPT OF DECORATIONS

3 AND MEDALS.—Such section 704 is further amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub5 section (c); 

6 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(b) FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT RECEIPT OF MILITARY

9 DECORATIONS OR MEDALS.—Whoever falsely represents 

10 himself or herself, verbally or in writing, to have been 

11 awarded any decoration or medal authorized by Congress 

12 for the Armed Forces of the United States, any of the 

13 service medals or badges awarded to the members of such 

14 forces, the ribbon, button, or rosette of any such badge, 

15 decoration, or medal, or any colorable imitation of such 

16 item shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 

17 than six months, or both.’’; and 

18 (3) in paragraph (1) of subsection (c), as redes19 ignated by paragraph (1) of this subsection, by in20 serting ‘‘or (b)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)’’. 

21 (c) ENHANCED PENALTY FOR OFFENSES INVOLVING

22 CERTAIN OTHER MEDALS.—Such section 704 is further 

23 amended by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(d) ENHANCED PENALTY FOR OFFENSES INVOLV25 ING CERTAIN OTHER MEDALS.—If a decoration or medal 
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1 involved in an offense described in subsection (a) or (b) 

2 is a distinguished-service cross awarded under section 

3 3742 of title 10, a Navy cross awarded under section 6242 

4 of title 10, an Air Force cross awarded under section 8742 

5 of section 10, a silver star awarded under section 3746, 

6 6244, or 8746 of title 10, a Purple Heart awarded under 

7 section 1129 of title 10, or any replacement or duplicate 

8 medal for such medal as authorized by law, in lieu of the 

9 punishment provided in the applicable subsection, the of10 fender shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 

11 than 1 year, or both.’’. 

12 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Subsection (c) of 

13 such section 704, as so redesignated, is further amend14 ed— 

15 (1) by inserting ‘‘ENHANCED PENALTY FOR

16 OFFENSES INVOLVING’’ before ‘‘CONGRESSIONAL

17 MEDAL OF HONOR’’; and 

18 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(2) CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR DE21 FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘Congressional 

22 Medal of Honor’ means— 

23 ‘‘(A) a medal of honor awarded under sec24 tion 3741, 6241, or 8741 of title 10 or section 

25 491 of title 14; 
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1 ‘‘(B) a duplicate medal of honor issued 

2 under section 3754, 6256, or 8754 of title 10 

3 or section 504 of title 14; or 

4 ‘‘(C) a replacement of a medal of honor 

5 provided under section 3747, 6253, or 8747 of 

6 title 10 or section 501 of title 14.’’. 

Æ