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U.S. Code as of:
01/19/04
Section 894. Collection of extensions of credit by extortionate means
(a) Whoever knowingly participates in any way, or conspires to do
so, in the use of any extortionate means
(1) to collect or attempt to collect any extension of credit,
or
(2) to punish any person for the nonrepayment thereof,
shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20
years, or both.
(b) In any prosecution under this section, for the purpose of
showing an implicit threat as a means of collection, evidence may
be introduced tending to show that one or more extensions of credit
by the creditor were, to the knowledge of the person against whom
the implicit threat was alleged to have been made, collected or
attempted to be collected by extortionate means or that the
nonrepayment thereof was punished by extortionate means.
(c) In any prosecution under this section, if evidence has been
introduced tending to show the existence, at the time the extension
of credit in question was made, of the circumstances described in
section 892(b)(1) or the circumstances described in section
892(b)(2), and direct evidence of the actual belief of the debtor
as to the creditor's collection practices is not available, then
for the purpose of showing that words or other means of
communication, shown to have been employed as a means of
collection, in fact carried an express or implicit threat, the
court may in its discretion allow evidence to be introduced tending
to show the reputation of the defendant in any community of which
the person against whom the alleged threat was made was a member at
the time of the collection or attempt at collection.
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