How to Become a Federal Criminal by Mike Chase

How to Become a Federal Criminal: An Illustrated Handbook for the Aspiring Offender

Written and Illustrated by Mike Chase | @CrimeADay

“Somebody with credentials has combed through a mountain of boring literature, highlighted all the ticklish parts and served them up for appreciation. This is an excellent book for people who like to start sentences with ‘Did you know that...'"
—The New York Times

A hilarious, entertaining, and illuminating compendium of the most bizarre ways you might become a federal criminal in America—from mailing a mongoose to selling Swiss cheese without enough holes—written and illustrated by the creator of the wildly popular @CrimeADay Twitter account.

Have you ever clogged a toilet in a national forest? That could get you six months in federal prison. Written a letter to a pirate? You might be looking at three years in the slammer. Leaving the country with too many nickels, drinking a beer on a bicycle in a national park, or importing a pregnant polar bear are all very real crimes, and this riotously funny, ridiculously entertaining, and fully illustrated book shows how just about anyone can become—or may already be—a federal criminal.

Whether you’re a criminal defense lawyer or just a self-taught expert in outrageous offenses, How to Become a Federal Criminal is your wonderfully weird window into a criminally overlooked sector of American government.

About the Author: Mike Chase

Mike Chase is a criminal defense lawyer and creator of the @CrimeADay Twitter feed, where he offers a daily dose of his extensive research into the curious, intriguing, and often amusing history of America's expansive criminal laws. Chase's work has made him the go-to commentator on our country's countless weird, esoteric, and, some would argue, unnecessary federal crimes. He regularly speaks and writes on criminal justice issues, including in the Wall Street Journal.

SimonandSchuster.com | Facebook.com/AtriaBooks | @AtriaBooks | Jacket Design by Philip Pascuzzo | Jacket Illustrations by Mike Chase | Author Photograph by Allegra Anderson | USA 2019 Simon & Schuster / Atria Books