View all text of Chapter 15 [§ 1701 - § 1708]
§ 1704. Concurrent jurisdiction; exceptions for national defense purposes
(a) Except as otherwise provided by law, the governments of the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa, shall have concurrent civil and criminal jurisdiction with the United States with regard to property owned, reserved, or controlled by the United States in the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa respectively. A judgment of conviction or acquittal on the merits under the laws of Guam, the Virgin Islands, or American Samoa shall be a bar to any prosecution under the criminal laws of the United States for the same act or acts, and a judgment of conviction or acquittal on the merits under the laws of the United States shall be a bar to any prosecution under the laws of Guam, the Virgin Islands, or American Samoa for the same act or acts.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the President may from time to time exclude from the concurrent jurisdiction of the government of Guam persons found, acts performed, and offenses committed on the property of the United States which is under the control of the Secretary of Defense to such extent and in such circumstances as he finds required in the interest of the national defense.
(Pub. L. 88–183, § 4, Nov. 20, 1963, 77 Stat. 339; Pub. L. 99–396, § 3, Aug. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 839.)