When does an envelope become mail?
December 3, 2004 7:07 AM   Subscribe

When, for the purposes of US law, does an envelope become mail?
posted by kenko to Law & Government (9 answers total)
 
When you write an address on the front, stick a stamp in the upper right-hand corner, and drop it in a mailbox.
posted by naomi at 7:14 AM on December 3, 2004


Normally the US Code would define a term like "mail", but it seems they assume it is obvious, or I just can't find it. The closest I could get was in the criminal code that covers "Obstruction of correspondence", 18 USC 1702. It defines what letters you'd get in trouble for stealing:

"any letter, postal card, or package out of any post office or any authorized depository for mail matter, or from any letter or mail carrier, or which has been in any post office or authorized depository, or in the custody of any letter or mail carrier, before it has been delivered to the person to whom it was directed"
posted by smackfu at 7:20 AM on December 3, 2004


for purposes of court filings through the prison mail system, it becomes mail when it is deposited into the system, regardless of proper addressing, proper postage or other accoutrement. regardless of when the USPS gets around to collecting the mail from the prison mail system. but this is an issue of custody: that is, when did the responsibility for timely filing become completely out of the prisoner's control?

presumably, that could be extracted to the federal mail system generally, and when an article intended to be carried through the postal system is placed into the custody of that system (e.g., into the mail box).

but really, what are you asking? are you asking when does the USPS gain responsibility over the letter? are you asking when does the privacy expectation concerning the letter shift? are you asking something else entirely?
posted by crush-onastick at 7:24 AM on December 3, 2004


I think we need more information. Explaining what the issue is (providing the context) would help -- if the issue is mail fraud, there might be one answer. If the issue is whether or when a contract has been established (say an insurance policy), the answer might be something totally different.
posted by pardonyou? at 7:25 AM on December 3, 2004


Response by poster: I was thinking of tampering with someone else's mail (that is, that's the issue I was thinking of, I wasn't planning on doing it). This is a federal crime, right? Specifically I noticed on the way of work yesterday that there were several stamped and addressed envelopes sitting waiting to be mailed, and I wondered if it would be the same type of thing to take them, pre-mailed, as it would be to take someone's mail that has been delivered. Idly, of course.

I didn't realize there were multiple angles of consideration that could affect the answer.
posted by kenko at 7:41 AM on December 3, 2004


that's not tampering with the mail as far as the federal code is concerned (which, as i recall correctly is not even what the federal crime is, but that's another thing), unless by "waiting to be mailed" you mean sitting in an "authorized depository for mail matter" waiting to be picked up by the USPS postal carrier, not sitting on the desk waiting for the guy from the mail room.
posted by crush-onastick at 7:48 AM on December 3, 2004


kenko, in light of that, I think smackfu's response above gives you your answer: As far as federal law is concerned, you couldn't be convicted of mail tampering (or "obstructing") unless you removed it from a post office, authorized depository, or mail carrier. (You might need to find out what constitutes "authorized depository," although I'm quite sure sitting on an office shelf or desk wouldn't count).

However, there could be other laws at play. I would assume taking such letters would be considered theft of some sort.

(on preview, what crush-onastick says)
posted by pardonyou? at 7:52 AM on December 3, 2004


Okay, so you're asking if tampering with the letters you're thinking OF STEALING is mail fraud.

Not to be overly rude or anything, but this is sorta like calling the cops to report that someone stole your cocaine.


jeez, lay off the guy, he said this was all idle speculation. Furthermore, your analogy makes no sense - how is stealing a letter comparable to calling the cops to report a theft? Are you comparing the letters to cocaine? If he's doing the stealing, why would he be calling the cops? You've totally lost me with that.

your main point (I think), of "you would be stealing, not commiting mail fraud," is a valid one, i think. So going back to the original question, it seems that an envelope is not "mail" until it gets dropped into a mailbox. So if you stole the letter, it would just be petty theft, right? Are there any sort of "invasion of privacy" type laws that could apply? What if the letters contained sensitive personal information?
posted by rorycberger at 1:30 PM on December 3, 2004


Response by poster: Yeah, I know stealing the letters would be illegal (and I have no intention of doing that). I just wondered, at what point does messing with a letter become messing with "mail". Sheesh.
posted by kenko at 5:54 PM on December 3, 2004


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