33 USC § 387 - Duties of officers of customs and marshals as to seizure

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t33/s387"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "33 USC § 387 - Duties of officers of customs and marshals as to seizure"
title_number: 33
title_name: "NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS"
section_number: "387"
section_name: "Duties of officers of customs and marshals as to seizure"
chapter_number: 7
chapter_name: "REGULATIONS FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF PIRACY"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(R.S. § 4299.)"
---


# § 387. Duties of officers of customs and marshals as to seizure

section 385 of this title

The collectors of the several ports of entry, the surveyors of the several ports of delivery, and the marshals of the several judicial districts within the United States, shall seize any vessel or boat built, purchased, fitted out, or held as mentioned in , which may be found within their respective ports or districts, and to cause the same to be proceeded against and disposed of as provided by that section.

---

**Source Credit**: (R.S. § 4299.)

## Editorial Notes

### References in Text

Surveyors of the several ports of delivery, referred to in text, are probably obsolete offices in view of , , which abolished the offices of surveyors of customs, except at the Port of New York. Ports of delivery, except those which were made ports of entry, were abolished and the use of the term “port of delivery” was discontinued under the President’s plan of reorganization of the customs service communicated to Congress by message dated .

### Codification

R.S. § 4299 derived from , .

## Executive Documents

### Transfer of Functions

All offices of collector of customs, comptroller of customs, surveyor of customs, and appraiser of merchandise in Bureau of Customs of Department of the Treasury to which appointments were required to be made by President with advice and consent of Senate ordered abolished, with such offices to be terminated not later than , by Reorg. Plan No. 1, of 1965, eff. , 30 F.R. 7035, , set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. All functions of offices eliminated were already vested in Secretary of the Treasury by Reorg. Plan No. 26 of 1950, eff. , 15 F.R. 4935, , set out in the Appendix to Title 5.