Bellingham residents reported finding Jesus figurines in their mailboxes. Is that a crime?

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Some residents of the Roosevelt area found a special guest waiting for them in their mailbox earlier this week – a miniature figurine of Jesus. A thread about the unexpected deliveries made its way around neighborhood message board site Nextdoor, before turning into a discussion of the figurine’s legal implications.

One user suggested that whoever placed it there committed a federal crime that carries a $10,000 fine. It’s also worth noting that there was a brief dispute over whether it was more accurate to call the figurine a “tiny Jesus” or a “mini-Jesus.”

Whether it’s “tiny” or “mini,” can you really get fined $10,000 for putting a one-inch Jesus in your neighbor’s mailbox? Here’s what we found out.

Is using a mailbox illegal?

Placing anything other than stamped mail in a mailbox is illegal, according to 18 U.S. Code 1725. The law, which originated in 1934, says that offenders are subject to a fine.

But will that fine set you back $10,000? A 2017 post on the Oxford University Press’s blog says that individuals can be fined up to $5,000 and businesses can be fined $10,000. A 2022 article published on Poughkeepsie, New York radio station WPDH’s website repeats that claim.

It seems more likely, though, that you’d just have to pay the amount that proper postage would cost. The U.S. Postal Service’s Domestic Mail Manual states that, “any mailable matter not bearing postage and found … is subject to the same postage as would be paid if it were carried by mail.”

That’s what happened to a Connecticut family in 2011, according to a Time article. After the family hand-delivered invitations to 80 neighbors for a Halloween block party, USPS demanded $0.44 per invitation.

What if you don’t want unsolicited Jesus figurines?

If you’re not in the market for one inch-tall lords and/or saviors, here’s how you can stop mini-Jesuses or other unstamped mail from showing up in your mailbox.

The best way to stop receiving unstamped mail is to contact the sender, according to USPS spokesperson Kimberly Frum. Of course, that might be tricky since mail that hasn’t been stamped is less likely to have a return address. But for fliers or invitations delivered without proper postage, it should be easy to identify the sender.

If you don’t know who placed the item in your mailbox, Frum recommends reporting the unauthorized delivery to your local post office (that is, if you’re okay with subjecting the sender to a $0.44 postal fee or a potential $10,000 fine).

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service also provides a way to report any mail crimes.