Act to protect the commerce of the United States and punish the crime of piracy

Piracy Act of 1819
Other short titles1819 James Monroe Piracy Act
Long titleAn Act to protect the commerce of the United States, and punish the crime of piracy.
Acronyms (colloquial)PSA
NicknamesPiracy Suppression Act of 1819
Enacted bythe 15th United States Congress
EffectiveMarch 3, 1819
Citations
Public lawPub. L. 15–77
Statutes at Large3 Stat. 510, Chap. 77
Codification
Titles amended33 U.S.C.: Navigable Waters
U.S.C. sections created33 U.S.C. ch. 7 § 381 et seq.
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the Senate and House by
  • Passed the Senate on February 24, 1819 (Passed)
  • Passed the House on March 1, 1819 (Passed)
  • Signed into law by President James Monroe on March 3, 1819
Major amendments
  • ☆ P.L. 16-113, 3 Stat. 600, 1820
  • ☆ P.L. 17-7, 3 Stat. 721, 1823
  • ☆ P.L. 37-48, 12 Stat. 314, 1861

An Act to protect the commerce of the United States and punish the crime of piracy is an 1819 United States federal statute against piracy, amended in 1820 to declare participating in the slave trade or robbing a ship to be piracy as well. The last execution for piracy in the United States was of slave trader Nathaniel Gordon in 1862 in New York, under the amended act.