united-states constitutional-law us-constitution
What crimes are senators and representatives immune of?
<p><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/articlei" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Art. 1 Sect. 6 Cl. 1</a> of the Constitution states that</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>[Part 1]</strong> The Senators and Representatives shall receive a compensation for their services to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the treasury of the United States.</p>
<p><strong>[Part 2]</strong> They shall in all cases, except</p>
<ul>
<li><p>treason,</p>
</li>
<li><p>felony</p>
</li>
<li><p>and breach of the peace,</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>[Part 3]</strong> be privileged from arrest during</p>
<ul>
<li><p>their attendance at the session of their respective Houses,</p>
</li>
<li><p>and in going to and returning from the same;</p>
</li>
<li><p>and for any speech or debate in either House,</p>
</li>
<li><p>they shall not be questioned in any other place.</p>
</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p><sup><em>Formatting mine</em></sup></p>
<p>I am having a little bit of trouble understanding exactly what parts 2 and 3 are saying.</p>
<p>From what I understand, Part 2 is saying that a member of Congress cannot be arrested, unless they commit &quot;treason&quot;, a &quot;felony&quot;, or a &quot;breach of the peace.&quot; Part 3, though, is really the part that I find confusing.</p>
<p>Is Part 3 essentially saying that a Senator or Representative may not be arrested except for treason, felony, or breach of the peace <em>anywhere</em>, or is it for a specific place?</p>
<p>Also, are there any real examples of a Senator or Representative committing a crime other than those outlined above?</p>

<p>Your parsing is incorrect.  The semicolon after &quot;from the same&quot; starts a new clause.</p>
<p>It should be read as:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>[Part 2]</strong> They shall in all cases, except</p>
<ul>
<li><p>treason,</p>
</li>
<li><p>felony</p>
</li>
<li><p>and breach of the peace,</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>[Part 3]</strong> be privileged from arrest during</p>
<ul>
<li><p>their attendance at the session of their respective Houses,</p>
</li>
<li><p>and in going to and returning from the same;</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>[Part 4]</strong> and for any speech or debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other place.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So they are privileged from arrest while attending sessions, or while going to and returning from those sessions, except in cases of treason, felony, or breach of the peace.</p>
<p>As a separate privilege, they shall not be questioned anywhere (except in Congress itself) regarding their speech and debate in Congress.</p>
<p>But if they are neither attending, going to, or returning from a Congressional session, and the crime is not related to their speech or debate, they have no immunity.</p>
<p>Also, to echo user6726, the privilege from arrest while attending Congress or traveling is not the same as immunity.  If they commit a crime on the way to or from Congress, they can still be arrested after they get home, and subsequently tried and convicted.</p>

<p>If a Congressman commits any crime, he may eventually be arrested. However, there are specific crimes which allow arresting a Congressman while he is attending a session of Congress, or going to or from a session, namely treason, felony or breach of peace. Many Congressmen have been arrested and convicted of crimes: as far as I know, this has never happened on the floor of the House or Senate. If a Congressman were to commit a felony, he could be arrested there. Prior to the Civil War, the House Sergeant of arms arrested Henry Edmundson for assault. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1981/02/05/us/rep-hinson-of-mississippi-arrested-in-the-capital-on-a-morals-charge.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Jon Hinson</a> was arrested in 1981 while congress was in session, though not arrested on the floor.</p>

<p>In addition, things that Congressmen say on the floor cannot be used against them, thus they can slander anyone on the floor.</p>
