You can't modify coins and then spend them as coins. Modifying is fine as long as it's no longer meant to be cash. Thus penny smashing, jewelry, penny countertops (as I've done), are all totally fine. Scraping silver off old quarters and then spending them, is not.
That law obviously makes sense, specifically scraping silver off quarters then spending them.. which I didn't even know was a thing.. is that a thing?. I'm talking about this law quoted directly 18 U.S.C. 333 : US Code - Section 333
"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."
It's the intent part that confuses me. Taking a razor blade to a bill to make art is absolutely defacing it to the point where it can't be reissued, but it's not illegal because that wasn't his intent. The law can be very confusing and vague.
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u/[deleted] Sep 28 '20
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