Pirates Without Treasure: The Fourth Circuit Declares that Robbery Is Not an Essential Element of General Piracy

I. Introduction In two factually similar cases, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit was tasked with determining whether the piracy statute, 18 U.S.C. � 1651, encompasses attacks on vessels in international waters when the attackers do not seize or rob the vessels. 1 Both cases were on appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, where two district judges had reached divergent conclusions on the definition of piracy. 2 In United States v. Dire, five Somali defendants were convicted of piracy (under 18 U.S.C. � 1651), attack to plunder a vessel (under 18 U.S.C. � 1659), and numerous other offenses in connection with their imprudent attack on a United States Navy ship on the high seas between Somalia and the Seychelles. 3 Three defendants in an attack skiff, armed with a rocket-propelled grenade launcher and AK-47 assault rifles, launched an attack on the USS NICHOLAS, which was disguised as a merchant vessel. The crew of the USS NICHOLAS returned fire, captured the defendants in the skiff, and captured two additional defendants in a nearby "mother ship." 4 In United States v. Said, six defendants were charged with, among other offenses, piracy (under 18 U.S.C. � 1651) and attack to plunder a vessel (under 18 U.S.C. � 1659) for their attack on a Navy ship, the USS ASHLAND. 5 The defendants in a skiff opened fire on the vessel in the Gulf of Aden. 6