LAS Vegas RICO Lawyer

Understanding Rico Charges: A Comprehensive Guide to Federal Racketeering Laws

Are you trying to demystify RICO charges? This powerful legal tool used by prosecutors can ensue complex cases and severe penalties. Here, we break down RICO’s purpose, its pivotal elements like ‘enterprise’ and ‘predicate crimes,’ and how they could impact those accused. Are you facing RICO charges? Time is of the essence, contact our Las Vegas RICO lawyer today at Spartacus Criminal Defense Lawyers for a consultation.

Key Takeaways

• RICO laws target individuals and entities involved in organized crime by allowing prosecution for racketeering if they are associated with a group committing multiple crimes within a 10-year period, irrespective of direct involvement in the predicate offenses.
• For a RICO violation, the prosecution must prove the existence of an enterprise, establish a pattern of racketeering activity through at least two related predicate crimes within a ten-year period, and show these crimes are neither isolated nor unrelated incidents.
• Convictions under RICO can result in severe criminal and civil penalties, including prison sentences up to 20 years, financial fines, treble damages for civil plaintiffs, and asset forfeiture to strip criminals of gains from racketeering activities.

The Basics of RICO Charges

RICO, short for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, is a federal criminal statute specifically designed to disassemble organized crime and racketeering. This unique legislation targets both individuals and organizations involved in multiple criminal activities that span across state lines within a specified timeframe. 

One doesn’t need to be directly involved in committing two or more predicate offenses to be found guilty of racketeering under RICO laws. As long as they are associated with a group or organization that enables the perpetration of these crimes, they can face a RICO indictment. It’s this broad scope of the law that makes it a powerful deterrent for corrupt organizations.

The Purpose of RICO

RICO was designed with a specific purpose in mind: to disrupt organized crime and racketeering by zeroing in on the leaders of criminal enterprises who mastermind operations, rather than just dealing with individual crimes. This approach enables prosecutors to go after the kingpins, confiscate their assets, and hold them responsible for the actions of their subordinates.

The Corrupt Organizations Act, also known as the RICO Act or the RICO Statute, has demonstrated its value as a significant legal instrument in tackling large-scale crime and racketeering activities. It’s a different strategy than the one used by legislation targeting individual crimes, allowing the prosecution of all individuals involved in a corrupt organization.

A Brief History of RICO

In 1970, the RICO Act was introduced as a component of the Organized Crime Control Act, aiming primarily to fight against organized crime and corruption in the United States. Its initial major prosecution under the RICO Act occurred in 1980, targeting the leader of the Genovese crime family, marking its initial application in addressing conventional organized crime.

Over the years, the application of the RICO Act has evolved under the federal government, shifting from its initial focus on mobsters and Mafia-type syndicates to also targeting white-collar criminal enterprises, expanding its reach and enabling federal prosecutors to link crimes committed over extended periods.

How RICO Works

RICO provides an expansive definition of an ‘enterprise’, encompassing any individual, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity involved in activities that influence interstate or foreign commerce. To qualify as ‘related predicate crimes’ under RICO, the offenses must be interconnected and not isolated incidents. These offenses must demonstrate a pattern of criminal behavior as part of the racketeering activity.

Prosecuting a RICO case involves:

• Identifying the enterprise involved in organized crime
• Demonstrating that the defendant committed at least two related predicate crimes within a ten-year period
• Proving that these crimes amounted to a pattern of racketeering activity.

Elements of a RICO Violation

In the case of RICO charges, prosecutors must establish three crucial elements: the enterprise, predicate crimes, and the presence of a pattern of racketeering activity.

An ‘enterprise’ under RICO Laws encompasses any individual, partnership, corporation, or association. Predicate crimes are offenses that serve as a basis for a RICO charge. Typically, this involves engaging in at least two predicate offenses. A pattern of racketeering activity involves committing, attempting to commit, conspiring to commit, or intentionally aiding, soliciting, coercing, or participating in criminal acts related to racketeering.

The Enterprise

In a RICO case, an enterprise can be defined as:

• any individual
• partnership
• corporation
• association
• other legal entity, even including any union

The vagueness of this definition opens the door for a wide array of organizations to be deemed enterprises under RICO. There is a stipulation, however, that mandates the commission of at least two predicate crimes through the enterprise within a 10-year timeframe for a RICO charge.

In a RICO trial, establishing the existence of an enterprise involves demonstrating beyond a reasonable doubt that the individuals implicated were all members of a conspiracy or group that constitutes the enterprise.

Predicate Crimes

Predicate crimes, or acts, that may result in RICO charges include a wide range of criminal activities, such as federal crimes like:

• Money laundering
• Wire fraud
• Murder
• Kidnapping
• Human trafficking

These offenses function as the foundation for the RICO claim, playing a role in establishing the elements of a racketeering offense.

Remember, an individual can be charged with a predicate crime without necessarily being implicated in a RICO violation.

Establishing a Pattern of Racketeering Activity

To establish a pattern of racketeering activity, prosecutors must prove that the defendant committed at least two related predicate crimes within a 10-year period through the enterprise. These crimes must involve two or more offenses that are interconnected and not just isolated events. These offenses must demonstrate a pattern of criminal behavior as part of the racketeering activity.

Therefore, a common defense against RICO charges involves arguing that the prosecutor failed to establish the interconnectedness of these crimes.

Penalties and Consequences of RICO Convictions

RICO convictions carry severe penalties that can be both criminal and civil in nature. Individuals convicted of RICO offenses may face a minimum prison term of 20 years, particularly for more severe offenses. Additionally, they may be subject to fines and other penalties.

Those convicted of racketeering may face the following penalties:

• A fine of up to $25,000
• A maximum prison sentence of 20 years per racketeering count
• Surrender of all unlawfully acquired profits
• Surrender of any stake in a business obtained through a pattern of ‘racketeering activity’

Criminal Penalties

Criminal RICO convictions can result in severe penalties, which include prison sentences of up to 20 years and hefty financial fines. A RICO conviction generally entails not only imprisonment but also substantial financial sanctions as part of the consequences. These financial penalties can be significant, often involving fines of up to $250,000 or twice the amount of the illicit profits.

Furthermore, if the racketeering activities related to the RICO conviction involve murders, the sentence can be elevated to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Civil Penalties

Besides criminal penalties, civil RICO convictions can also lead to civil penalties. These civil penalties enable individuals who have suffered from a RICO violation to file a civil lawsuit and potentially receive triple damages in the event of a successful outcome.

Damages are determined by the actual losses suffered by the plaintiff as a result of the defendant’s wrongful behavior. The law allows for treble damages, which enables courts to triple the amount of compensatory damages to ensure adequate compensation for the victim.

Asset Forfeiture

Asset forfeiture is another potential consequence of a RICO conviction, where the government has the authority to confiscate any assets that were acquired through or utilized to aid the racketeering activities. The process of asset forfeiture typically entails civil forfeiture proceedings, enabling the government to confiscate and potentially auction off any assets linked to a criminal offense.

These procedures are designed to strip criminals of their illicit gains and disrupt organized crime financially.

Defending Against RICO Charges

Several defense strategies can be utilized when confronted with RICO charges. These include:

• Presenting arguments that there was no conspiracy to commit the crimes
• Asserting that the acts were not criminal
• Claiming mistaken identity
• Lack of a pattern of racketeering activity
• Effectively negotiating a resolution that does not involve RICO charges

Challenging the Enterprise

One defense strategy against RICO charges involves disputing the enterprise. This involves raising reasonable doubt regarding the existence or the characteristics of the organization that the prosecution alleges was engaged in the racketeering activities. Legal strategies utilized to contest the enterprise in a RICO charge may encompass:

• Arguing mistaken identity
• Asserting a lack of pattern of racketeering activity
• Disputing the existence of a criminal organization directing the criminal activity
• Casting reasonable doubt on one or more of the elements of the RICO crime.

Disputing the Pattern of Racketeering Activity

Another significant defense strategy is contesting the pattern of racketeering activity. This involves arguing that the alleged predicate crimes were not related or that they did not occur within the required 10-year period. A common defense against RICO charges involves arguing that the prosecutor failed to establish the interconnectedness of these crimes.

If the predicate offenses are unrelated, it weakens the prosecution’s assertion of a racketeering pattern, which is a crucial element for RICO charges.

Excluding Illegally Obtained Evidence

A final defense strategy in RICO cases could involve the exclusion of illegally obtained evidence. This involves arguing that any evidence gathered by law enforcement in violation of the defendant’s constitutional rights should be thrown out of the case. Evidence may be deemed illegally obtained under RICO laws if it is acquired in a manner that contravenes the Fourth Amendment, for instance, through an unauthorized search or seizure.

Thus, a defense attorney can present arguments at a suppression hearing in federal court and invoke the exclusionary rule to prohibit the use of evidence obtained through unreasonable search or seizure.

Real-World Examples of RICO Prosecutions

Over the years, RICO laws, a part of federal law, have been enforced in a wide range of cases, ensnaring the leaders of both conventional and white-collar criminal enterprises. However, prosecutors often face challenges due to the requirement of demonstrating a pattern connecting offenses committed for the same purpose or as part of the same scheme.

A notable example of a RICO prosecution targeted the traditional organized crime network, leading to the prosecution of 91 leaders, members, and associates of the La Cosa Nostra families. The charges ranged from murder to narcotics trafficking, demonstrating the law’s intent to dismantle deeply entrenched criminal organizations.