Top Fort Defiance, AZ RICO Lawyers Near You
799 9th Street NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20001
1 Financial Plaza, Suite 2800, Providence, RI 02903
1200 Jefferson Street, PO Box 1040, Washington, MO 63090
17 Corporate Plaza Dr, Suite 254, Newport Beach, CA 92660
101 JFK Parkway, Short Hills, NJ 07078-2708
2925 Richmond Ave, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77098
100 Chestnut Street, 2000 Five Star Bank Plaza, Rochester, NY 14604-2404
155 Bovet Rd, Suite 600, San Mateo, CA 94402
1888 Century Park East, Suite 2100, Los Angeles, CA 90067-1725
2560 Huntington Avenue, Suite 204, Alexandria, VA 22303
106 S. President Street, Suite 400, Jackson, MS 39201
1101 Johnson Avenue, Suite 300, Myrtle Beach, SC 29577
1177 Avenue of the Americas, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10036
2601 Main St, Sutie 850, Irvine, CA 92614
434 New York Avenue, Huntington, NY 11743
12830 El Camino Real, Suite 350, San Diego, CA 92130
225 South 6th St, Suite 1500, Minneapolis, MN 55402
1144 15th St, Suite 3300, Denver, CO 80202
1700 M St NW, Washington, DC 20036-5306
3 Embarcadero Center, 25th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94111
3475 Piedmont Road Northeast, Suite 1640, Atlanta, GA 30305
112 East Pecan Street, Weston Centre, 18th Floor, San Antonio, TX 78205
100 N Stone Ave, Suite 1005, Tucson, AZ 85701
One Constitution Plaza, Hartford, CT 06103
1075 Peachtree Street NE, Suite 1700, Atlanta, GA 30309
Fort Defiance RICO Information
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What Is a RICO Violation?
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act was enacted in 1970 to address organized crime. Under RICO laws, anyone associated with the criminal group could be charged, including organization leaders who ordered or oversaw the criminal activity without directly taking part. RICO also provided for civil remedies and triple damages to recover unlawful gains.
How Do I Get a RICO Charge?
A RICO charge generally involves participation in a “criminal enterprise” with a “pattern of racketeering activity.” To get a RICO charge, the prosecutor must suspect you were involved in a criminal gang or group and the criminal activity involved more than a one-time event. Initially, RICO was used to go after organized crime and the Mafia. However, since the law went into effect, it has been used to indict a number of alleged criminal enterprises, including street gangs, motorcycle gangs, corporations, and police departments
The RICO Act also makes it a violation to conspire to commit racketeering offenses. Conspiracy to violate RICO charges means that someone can be charged and convicted even if the crime was never carried out. A conspiracy is an agreement between two or more people to commit a crime, with some overt act towards furthering the offense.
What Does the RICO Act Cover?
A “pattern of racketeering activity” requires at least two qualifying acts, within a period of ten years. The RICO Act has included several crimes that qualify as racketeering activity, including state and federal offenses. Acts of racketeering can include:
- Illegal gambling
- Murder
- Kidnapping
- Extortion
- Arson
- Robbery
- Bribery
- Dealing in obscene matter
- Drug offenses
- Counterfeiting
- Theft
- Embezzlement
- Fraud
- Witness tampering
- Human trafficking
- Money laundering
- Murder-for-hire
- Loan-sharking
- Terrorism
- Mail fraud
- Wire fraud
- Securities fraud
How Serious Is a RICO Charge?
A RICO charge is a serious criminal offense that carries the possibility of jail time, fines, and seizure of assets. RICO charges are federal felony charges that include imprisonment for up to 20 years or more. In addition to prison penalties, there are severe financial penalties, which include forfeiture of any interest, security, or property derived from racketeering activity.
There are also civil penalties under RICO. A violation of the RICO Act could include ordering the defendant to turn over financial or business interests, restrict future activities, and break up organizations. Civil remedies can also require restitution to any victims of the criminal offenses.
How Do You Beat a RICO Case?
When federal prosecutors charge someone with RICO offenses, the penalties can include years in federal prison and loss of your financial assets. However, you may have a strong legal case to beat RICO charges. Legal defenses may include challenging the prosecutor’s case to show there was no criminal enterprise and no pattern of criminal activity.
Even if you were involved in criminal activity, it has to be a pattern of racketeering. If there is only evidence of one crime, the defendant should not be convicted under RICO. Alternatively, committing a crime on your own without participation in a criminal organization may be another defense strategy.
Prosecutors may rely on the seriousness of RICO charges to get the defendant to plead guilty to other charges instead of facing the increased RICO penalties. However, before you plead guilty to criminal charges, you should consider talking to a criminal defense attorney for legal advice.