Anyone know what the deal is?  I thought (probably wrongly) that it was a nono to destroy currency.

BUT.

Almost every tourist place has AT LEAST one of those "put in your penny and two quarters, turn the crank and get your penny back squashed with our logo on it" machines.

Is it one of those "its wrong, but no one cares because its only a penny", "its not wrong and FOTBR doesn't know what he's talking about", or "its not wrong only because the squash-a-penny lobbying group got an exemption to the destroying US currency is wrong law" type of things.

I believe that law was repealed some time ago. (Like 20 years or more.)

Don't know, but i crushed a penny on one of the upper floors of the WTC.  

still have it too.

Dear hickey35-ga;

Thank you for allowing me to answer your interesting question.
Defacing US currency is indeed illegal. Defacement of currency in such
a way that it is made unfit for circulation comes under the
jurisdiction of the United States Secret Service:

United States Code
TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I - CRIMES
CHAPTER 17 - COINS AND CURRENCY
§ 333. Mutilation of national bank obligations

“Whoever mutilates, cuts, defaces, disfigures, or perforates, or
unites or cements together, or does any other thing to any bank bill,
draft, note, or other evidence of debt issued by any national banking
association, or Federal Reserve bank, or the Federal Reserve System,
with intent to render such bank bill, draft, note, or other evidence
of debt unfit to be reissued, shall be fined under this title or
imprisoned not more than six months, or both.”
FINDLAW
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/casecode/uscodes/18/parts/i/chapters/17/sections/section_333.html
or
http://assembler.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/display.html?terms=defaces&url=/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000333----000-.html

Prior to 1994 when this law was amended, the statute read “fined not
more than $100”. This was changed in 1994 to read “shall be fined
under this title” which effectively gives the court the authority to
impose a fine at its discretion. Of course the imprisonment terms
mentioned in the statute speaks for itself.

NOTES TITLE 18 SECTION 333
http://assembler.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000333----000-notes.html

This next statute concerns the defacing of currently circulated coins,
either foreign or domestic:

United States Code
TITLE 18
PART I
CHAPTER 17
§ 331. Mutilation, diminution, and falsification of coins

http://assembler.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/display.html?terms=defaces&url=/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000331----000-.html

“Whoever fraudulently alters, defaces, mutilates, impairs, diminishes,
falsifies, scales, or lightens any of the coins coined at the mints of
the United States, or any foreign coins which are by law made current
or are in actual use or circulation as money within the United States;
or whoever fraudulently possesses, passes, utters, publishes, or
sells, or attempts to pass, utter, publish, or sell, or brings into
the United States, any such coin, knowing the same to be altered,
defaced, mutilated, impaired, diminished, falsified, scaled, or
lightened— Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than
five years, or both.”

Like the statute I previously discussed, prior to 1994 when this law
was amended, the statute read “fined not more than $2,000”. This was
changed in 1994 to read “shall be fined under this title” which
effectively gives the court the authority to impose a fine at its
discretion. Of course the imprisonment terms mentioned in the statute
speaks for itself.

NOTES TITLE 18 SECTION 331
http://assembler.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000331----000-notes.html

“Do people sometimes do this and get away with it?”
Sure they do. We've all seen it and yet no one seems to be swooping
down on the violators to haul them off to jail.

“If this is the law spelled out before us in black and white then why
doesn’t the government prosecute everyone who does it?”
Your guess is as good as mine; but nevertheless, there’s the law, just
as it is written and just as you asked.

I hope you find that my research exceeds your expectations. If you
have any questions about my research please post a clarification
request prior to rating the answer. Otherwise I welcome your rating
and your final comments and I look forward to working with you again
in the near future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga – Google Answers Researcher



INFORMATION SOURCES

FDIC
http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/8000-1200.html

CORNELL LAW SCHOOL
http://www.law.cornell.edu/



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Every machine I've seen actually had a card or sticker outlining the laws that  allowed the machine's operation. (I don't remember it, though )

So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

Quoted: So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

Look at it this way, you're reducing the money supply and fighting inflation! Keep up the good work.

Never heard of or seen the "put in your penny and two quarters, turn the crank and get your penny back squashed with our logo on it" device. Then again, I don't travel much so I could easily miss out on that kind of tourist entertainment.

The closest, biggest thrill that comes to mind; when I was a kid we used to place pennies on the trolley tracks and wait for a trolley to come along and flatten them.

Quoted: So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

You are apparently a repeat felon.

Turn in your firearms and go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200.

Quoted: So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

I used to do that in a 500 ton press quarters pennies and dimes will mate!

Quoted: So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

I'll take one of those

I watched a show today about the US Mints, I believe it was on the National Geographic Channel, and the Mint guy they were interviewing said that once you get the money it's yours to do with as you please. Then they showed a machinist who mills out a Sakajawea(sp) dollar to press a quarter into one side, imitating an error coin.  He then sells them for $9.99, so if this was illegal I don't think they would have been showing it that way.


EDIT-Fixed typo.

U.S. Title 18, Chapter 17, Section 331: Prohibits fraudulent alteration and mutilation of coins. Fraudulent is the key word, not alteration or mutilation.  Therefore it doesn't prohibit the alteration or mutilation of coins if done without intent to commit fraud.

www.rockyrockholt.com/

www.pennysmasher.com/

Once the money is in your possession it is your property to do with as you please.

Post a pic of one!

Quoted: So I'm breaking the law when I squash quarters in the hydraulic press at work?  Lame.

I keep all the copper pennies I find, and someday when I have a huge stockpile and copper prices have risen high enough to make it worthwhile I will probably melt them and sell them as plain old copper.

I'll probably get charged with a million counts of that crime and spend the rest of my life in prison.

Posted awhile back... shrunken coins.





205.243.100.155/frames/shrinkergallery.html

How about shrinking coins.

www.teslamania.com/

beaten lol.

US currency is just fiat money now.
It's worth nothing.
Not really on topic, I just thought people should know their money is only backed by faith in the US economy, not anything tangible like gold, or silver.

Do pennies even figure into this law?

Some of the parameters that 'normal' currency follows don't fit the penny.

For instance, it doesn't have to be accepted as legal tender for all debts public and private.

Those machines amaze me, the principle behind them is astounding.

You walk up to a machine designed to detroy money. The entire purpose of this machine is to take money that you put in it (a penny) and detroy it. But it doesn't stop there. Not only are you using this machine to destroy your own money, but you also have to pay $.50 for the service of the machine. You pay a machine 1/2 of a dollar to destroy a penny. And people do it. My kid brother's class went to the zoo a couple weeks ago, and he told me that every single kid in his class used that machine to get their penny smashed. The entire concept only strengthens my belief that I should be ruling over a nation.

I once worked at a gift shop, and that infernal machine was the highest profit per square foot that we made.  They have about an 18"x18" footprint and are nearly allllll profit

We also had one of those big funnels that you put money in and watch it fall down.  It make buckets (literally!) of profit too, but took up a lot more space.

Quoted: Those machines amaze me, the principle behind them is astounding. You walk up to a machine designed to detroy money. The entire purpose of this machine is to take money that you put in it (a penny) and detroy it. But it doesn't stop there. Not only are you using this machine to destroy your own money, but you also have to pay $.50 for the service of the machine. You pay a machine 1/2 of a dollar to destroy a penny. And people do it. My kid brother's class went to the zoo a couple weeks ago, and he told me that every single kid in his class used that machine to get their penny smashed. The entire concept only strengthens my belief that I should be ruling over a nation.

Quoted: Those machines amaze me, the principle behind them is astounding. You walk up to a machine designed to detroy money. The entire purpose of this machine is to take money that you put in it (a penny) and detroy it. But it doesn't stop there. Not only are you using this machine to destroy your own money, but you also have to pay $.50 for the service of the machine. You pay a machine 1/2 of a dollar to destroy a penny. And people do it. My kid brother's class went to the zoo a couple weeks ago, and he told me that every single kid in his class used that machine to get their penny smashed. The entire concept only strengthens my belief that I should be ruling over a nation.

As opposed to, say, fireworks, or gunpowder.
Bang, and your money is gone.
What is the difference?

Quoted: Quoted: Those machines amaze me, the principle behind them is astounding. You walk up to a machine designed to detroy money. The entire purpose of this machine is to take money that you put in it (a penny) and detroy it. But it doesn't stop there. Not only are you using this machine to destroy your own money, but you also have to pay $.50 for the service of the machine. You pay a machine 1/2 of a dollar to destroy a penny. And people do it. My kid brother's class went to the zoo a couple weeks ago, and he told me that every single kid in his class used that machine to get their penny smashed. The entire concept only strengthens my belief that I should be ruling over a nation. As opposed to, say, fireworks, or gunpowder. Bang, and your money is gone. What is the difference?

Fireworks is another great sign of stupidity.

Gunpowder is not. Gunpowder and bullets are highly useful and cannot be compared to the Penny Smasher.

Who gives a shit. Like a penny is going to make a diff.

Gee.. I guess all those AK builders who hammer out the barrels with pennies as a buffer really are bad people.

Further proof that the AK is more evil than an AR!

Quoted: It was illegal up until 1981.  I don't know why they changed the law.

Because Haliburton owns the patent on the penny smashing machine.  

Even if it was illegal, I'm hoping that they have better things to do.

HH

I'm old-fashioned. Put a quarter on the railroad tracks, and wait for a freight train to go by.

The fun bit is finding the coin afterwards. Good news is it's usually shiny and within about ten feet of where you left it.

NTM

Bottom line... does it all really matter when each and everyone of you has handled at least one of my ass pennies?

danwho.net/mp/index.php?id=ucb_asspennies

it's one of those laws that is not practical to enforce on an individual level.

another example is at Air Force pilot training, your first flight with an instructor pilot is called a "dollar ride".  The premise is that you symbollically pay your IP a dollar for risking his life taking you flying.  The tradition is to personalize the dollar in a way that commerates the occasion.  Technically this is defacing currency, and by gov't employees no less, but it's a matter of small fish.

Quoted: I'm old-fashioned. Put a quarter on the railroad tracks, and wait for a freight train to go by. NTM

We used to put pennies on the train tracks near my house when I was a kid (as well as Raisinets and plastic toy soldiers, etc.)  We never went above pennies.  Back in those days, you still could buy things with a nickel or a dime.  

If someone put a quarter on the tracks to be squashed, I'm sure that I would have died of shock.