Top Fort Defiance, AZ RICO Lawyers Near You
100 E. Park St, Suite 8, Olathe, KS 66061
123 W. Allegan St, Suite 400, Lansing, MI 48933
1801 S. MoPac Expy, Suite 320, Austin, TX 78746
225 South 6th St, Suite 1500, Minneapolis, MN 55402
1050 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20036
1330 Broadway Suite 833, Oakland, CA 94612
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1350 Columbia Street, Suite 600, San Diego, CA 92101
750 East Pratt Street, Suite 900, Baltimore, MD 21202
Canterbury Green, 201 Broad Street, Stamford, CT 06901
59 Franklin St, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
1085 Raymond Blvd., 14th Floor, Newark, NJ 07102
1201 Demonbreun St, Suite 1000, Nashville, TN 37203
707 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 4100, Los Angeles, CA 90017
111 Congress Ave, Suite 1600, Austin, TX 78701
110 N Elgin Ave, Suite 200, Tulsa, OK 74120
2100 Southbridge Pkwy, Suite 650, Birmingham, AL 35209
1629 K Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006
118 East Garden Street, Pensacola, FL 32502
100 Vision Drive, One Eastover Center, Suite 400, Jackson, MS 39211
100 State St, Suite 103B, Erie, PA 16507
245 N Waco Ave, Suite 125, Wichita, KS 67202
912 Highland Ave, Orlando, FL 32803
1790 Hughes Landing Blvd, Suite 500, The Woodlands, TX 77380
3 Sanctuary Blvd., 3rd Floor, Mandeville, LA 70471
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.