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Posse Comitatus Act
The Posse Comitatus Act is a federal law that restricts certain types of military involvement in domestic law enforcement. The current statute, Title 18, U.S. Code, § 1385, states,
Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army or the Air Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.
This entry discusses the origins and provisions of the Posse Comitatus Act.
The act is statutorily inapplicable to the U.S. Navy and the Marine Corps, although it has been applied by long-standing policy and regulations to those branches of service; the Coast Guard is also not technically ...
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