Danny Cevallos is an MSNBC legal analyst.
Posted on 04/02/2018 8:54:59 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
It's a federal crime not to answer census questions or to give false information. But here's why you shouldn't worry about being prosecuted.
Article I, Section 2, of the Constitution requires the enumeration of people in the U.S. every 10 years for the purpose of apportioning congressional representatives.
The "Census Clause" also requires that representatives be apportioned among the states "according to their respective Numbers."
Federal law provides that anyone who refuses to answer or willfully neglects to answer any of the questions in connection with any census or survey shall be fined a maximum of $100, or a maximum of $500 if the person gives false information.
In theory, noncitizens should not fear answering census questions. Surveys are mailed to addresses, rather than to specific individuals.
Some categories of federal criminal statutes are heavily enforced. Drug crimes and immigration crimes make up over 50 percent of the federal prosecution caseload.
Then there are those federal crimes that are technically crimes, but not really. For example, it's a federal crime for a peanut dealer to refuse to tell the government how many peanuts he has. It's also a federal crime to mail a package of dead bees without writing "DEAD BEES" on every side of the box, using black letters at least an inch tall.
There are a lot of federal crimes. Not all of them are enforced. Refusing to answer the census or lying on it will likely remain in that second category — a crime, but not really.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
Danny Cevallos is an MSNBC legal analyst.
Sounds like he’s assuming that illegal invaders WILL lie about that question.
So, are illegals worth 3/5 of a person? :-D
They can force me to give information? I don't think so.
I'll tell you what: Congress has a responsibility to enumerate. I'll help them out: My household is "4".
And we're done.
What if I say, on my 2017 tax return, that I had health insurance, even if I didn’t?
nbc is actively encouraging illegals to lie?
They are ENCOURAGING them to lie. Which they will.
Sounds like he’s telling illegals “Go ahead and lie,” like Obama told them, “Go ahead and vote.”
I refuse to answer the “race/ethnicity” questions because I thought that we were race blind at this point in history.
Why should the government care what race I am, unless equality isn’t really realized?
I have long refused to answer any of their nosy Social Engineering questions thrown into the Census. No one has ever tried to fine me.
I think the cards are being stacked here. You force the question on the Census, then you have a federal record. Then you offer up DACA with the provision...if you have voted in the past as a non-citizen or answered wrongly on the Census record....your application for citizenship gets trashed. Toss in some type of national ID card coming by the end of Trump’s eight years and I think the non-citizen hype will be wrapped up and gone.
Is he lawyer?? An expert on Federal law? Why should I pay attention to his bleatings?
Or he is telling them to lie.
It’s worse than that. The media is saying “It’s ok to lie”.
On the bright side, if an illegal alien lies on the census, then gets got or when the government eventually gets around to it, it is another reason for deporting them.
And I refuse to answer the “American Community Survey” at all. I did get a visit from a Census goon, but told him to get of my property.
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He is advocating that illoegals lie on the census, and that advocacy is a felony.
He should be arrested immediately.
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Exactly.
Not only encouraging them to lie on a Federal form, but disguising it as free legal advice.
Someone needs to be made an example of.
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