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What this does is change the law like this:
* United States Code
o TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
+ PART I - CRIMES
# CHAPTER 113B - TERRORISM
U.S. Code as of: 01/22/02
Section 2332e. Requests for military assistance to enforce
prohibition in certain emergencies
The Attorney General may request the Secretary of Defense to
provide assistance under section 382 of title 10 in support of
Department of Justice activities relating to the enforcement of
section 2332c 2332a of this title during an emergency situation involving
a chemical weapon of mass destruction. The authority to make such a request
may be exercised by another official of the Department of Justice
in accordance with section 382(f)(2) of title 10.
According to what I can figure out, section 2332c was a section of the law
written in the 104th congress related to use of chemical weapons, and taken out
by the 105th congress. It took four more years to catch the "bug in the code",
changing the reference in 2332e from section c to section a.
Here is section 2332a:
Section 2332a. Use of certain weapons of mass destruction
(a) Offense Against a National of the United States or Within the
United States. - A person who, without lawful authority, uses,
threatens, or attempts or conspires to use, a weapon of mass
destruction (other than a chemical weapon as that term is defined
in section 229F), including any biological agent, toxin, or vector
(as those terms are defined in section 178) -
(1) against a national of the United States while such national
is outside of the United States;
(2) against any person within the United States, and the
results of such use affect interstate or foreign commerce or, in
the case of a threat, attempt, or conspiracy, would have affected
interstate or foreign commerce; or
(3) against any property that is owned, leased or used by the
United States or by any department or agency of the United
States, whether the property is within or outside of the United
States,
shall be imprisoned for any term of years or for life, and if death
results, shall be punished by death or imprisoned for any term of
years or for life.
(b) Offense by National of the United States Outside of the
United States. - Any national of the United States who, without
lawful authority, uses, or threatens, attempts, or conspires to
use, a weapon of mass destruction (other than a chemical weapon (as
that term is defined in section 229F)) outside of the United States
shall be imprisoned for any term of years or for life, and if death
results, shall be punished by death, or by imprisonment for any
term of years or for life.
(c) Definitions. - For purposes of this section -
(1) the term ''national of the United States'' has the meaning
given in section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22)); and
(2) the term ''weapon of mass destruction'' means -
(A) any destructive device as defined in section 921 of this
title;
(B) any weapon that is designed or intended to cause death or
serious bodily injury through the release, dissemination, or
impact of toxic or poisonous chemicals, or their precursors;
(C) any weapon involving a disease organism; or
(D) any weapon that is designed to release radiation or
radioactivity at a level dangerous to human life.
Striking the word "chemical" from the law means that they can now
define anything as a weapon of mass destruction. The definitions in 2332a don't
apply in 2332e because the law doesn't specify that. Perhaps another "bug
in the code"?
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