Hoaxes plague Postal Service

Lawmakers consider anti-hoax legislation

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Postal Service said Wednesday it has been plagued in recent days by nearly 12,000 hoaxes, threats and suspicious mail incidents -- an average of 654 daily -- that have resulted in the evacuation of 429 postal facilities for varying amounts of time.

IN-DEPTH  VIDEO/AUDIO   •  Investigators baffled by 94-year-old woman's death  MORE STORIES   •  Gephardt: Anthrax cleanup 'tougher than expected'   •  Official: CIA uses anthrax, but no link to letters  EXTRA INFORMATION   •  Anthrax symptoms   •  Tracking the bacteria  RESOURCES   •  Advice on suspicious packages   •  Message board

As of Wednesday, 26 people have been arrested for anthrax-related hoaxes and threats, the Postal Service said.

In reaction, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are trying to iron out the details of legislation aimed at stopping the flood of hoaxes.

The Subcommittee on Crime of the House Judiciary Committee is considering a bill that would classify as a felony any hoax or false information given in relation to terrorist attacks.

The Anti-Hoax Terrorism Act would impose a maximum five-year prison sentence and order the convicted defendant to reimburse the costs incurred by any military or civilian agency that responded to the false report. The defendant would also be liable to civil action suits.

Law enforcement officials testified before the subcommittee Wednesday that a deterrent is needed to allow emergency response teams to focus on real cases.

Early response teams "are in danger of having accidents with civilians on the street, who may not see them responding," said James Jarboe, section chief of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division. "So, the civilians are put at risk and the responders are put at risk.

"And also -- perhaps more importantly -- valuable resources that are tied up responding to a hoax could be better spent responding to an actual emergency incident where some individual is truly in distress."

James Reynolds, the Justice Department's chief of terrorism and violent crimes, voiced concerns that the bill as now written would require a prosecutor to prove the defendant knew the law.

"Ignorance of the law is not a defense," he said.

Reynolds endorsed third-party liability under which a person could seek reimbursement if he or she did not receive a timely emergency response as a result of a hoax.

Meanwhile, the Postal Service and the FBI announced Wednesday that the reward for information leading to the arrest of those behind the anthrax attacks has been increased from $1 million to $1.25 million, thanks to a $250,000 contribution by the advertising company ADVO.

ADVO is the largest private customer of the Postal Service.

The Postal Service also said it estimates 16,000 postal employees nationwide are on precautionary medication amid anthrax fears.

Two male postal employees who worked in the District of Columbia's Brentwood processing center died of inhalation anthrax. A contaminated letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle came through the center.

Two postal workers in the New York-New Jersey area have also contracted the most severe form of the disease, and three have contracted the less serious cutaneous form. Anthrax-laced letters sent to New York and Washington passed through mail facilities in those states.