Top Fort Defiance, AZ RICO Lawyers Near You
3600 NJ Route 66, Suite 150, Neptune, NJ 07753
1180 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 1920, New York, NY 10036
501 Commerce Street, Suite 1650, Nashville, TN 37203
150 S. Rodeo Dr., Suite 100, Beverly Hills, CA 90212
100 North Riverside Plaza, Suite 1500, Chicago, IL 60606
865 South Figueroa Street, Suite 2800, Los Angeles, CA 90017
3835 Baymeadows Rd, Suite 325, Jacksonville, FL 32217
1701 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20006
1270 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 2800, New York, NY 10020
500 Delaware Ave, Suite 600, Wilmington, DE 19801
20 Commerce Drive, Suite 150, Cranford, NJ 07016
318 South Washington Street, Suite 300, Green Bay, WI 54301
201 East Park Ave, FL 5, Tallahassee, FL 32301-1511
1301 6th Ave, New York, NY 10019
225 W Randolph Street, Suite 2600, Chicago, IL 60606
821 Herndon Ave, #140182, Orlando, FL 32803
100 Summer Street, Suite 2250, Boston, MA 02110
2333 Brickell Avenue, Suite A-1, Miami, FL 33129-2497
28 Boardman Pl, San Francisco, CA 94103
420 20th Street North, Suite 1100, Birmingham, AL 35203
333 SW Taylor Street, Suite 300, Portland, OR 97204
1125 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19107
1499 W Palmetto Park Road, Suite 218, Boca Raton, FL 33486
777 Brickell Aenue, 5th Floor, Miami, FL 33131
500 Union Street, Suite 847, Seattle, WA 98101
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.