19 U.S.C. § 1604
Seizure; prosecution 11 See Codification note below.
United States · Title 19 — CUSTOMS DUTIES · Status: effective
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- Citation
- 19 U.S.C. § 1604, Seizure; prosecution 11 See Codification note below, United States, version 1 as recorded 2026-07-09, yourstate.us, https://yourstate.us/provision/450486
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Full text
It shall be the duty of the Attorney General of the United States immediately to inquire into the facts of cases reported to him by customs officers and the laws applicable thereto, and if it appears probable that any fine, penalty, or forfeiture has been incurred by reason of such 1 violation, for the recovery of which the institution of proceedings in the United States district court or the Court of International Trade is necessary, forthwith to cause the proper proceedings to be commenced and prosecuted, without delay, for the recovery of such fine, penalty, or forfeiture in such case provided, unless, upon inquiry and examination, the Attorney General decides that such proceedings can not probably be sustained or that the ends of public justice do not require that they should be instituted or prosecuted, in which case he shall report the facts to the Secretary of the Treasury for his direction in the premises.
Legislative history
The public laws that enacted or amended this section. Tallies are for the whole bill as it passed each chamber — often an omnibus covering far more than this provision — not a vote on this section alone. The law that originally enacted this section predates the public laws loaded here, so only later amendments are listed.
- Customs Courts Act of 1979House: no recorded tallySenate: no recorded tally