H.R. 59
Mens Rea Reform Act of 2025
In Plain Language
This bill says that for federal crimes where the law doesn't specify what someone had to be thinking, the government must prove the person knowingly did each part of the crime. Right now, some federal crimes don't require prosecutors to show the defendant meant to do something wrong, and this change would make that proof necessary.
Official Congressional Research Service summary
Mens Rea Reform Act of 2025This bill establishes a default mens rea standard (i.e., state of mind requirement) for federal criminal offenses—statutory and regulatory—that lack an explicit standard.The government must generally prove that a defendant acted knowingly with respect to each element of an offense for which the text does not specify a state of mind.
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Latest action
Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 15 - 13.
Jun 10, 2025
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