Top Fort Defiance, AZ RICO Lawyers Near You
575 Lexington Ave, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10022
25 South Charles Street, 21st Floor, Baltimore, MD 21201
1 St. Louis Street, Suite 1000, Mobile, AL 36602
521 Georgia St, Vallejo, CA 94590
201 E Las Olas Blvd, Suite 1500, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
2400 Hanover St, Palo Alto, CA 94304
3333 Mendocino Avenue, Suite 200, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
7700 Forsyth Blvd., Suite 1100, St. Louis, MO 63105
36 S Washington St, 2nd Floor, Hinsdale, IL 60521
50 Hurt Plaza, Suite 1640, Atlanta, GA 30303
332 S Michigan Ave, Suite 121 #5612, Chicago, IL 60604
500 Arguello Street, Suite 500, Redwood City, CA 94063
1355 Peachtree Street NE, Suite 455, Atlanta, GA 30309
Tampa Theatre Building, 707 North Franklin Street, 2nd Floor, PO Box 342242, Tampa, FL 33694
127 Main Street, Casco, WI 54205
800 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022
200 W. Forsyth Street, Suite 1700, Jacksonville, FL 32203-4317
100 SE 2nd Street, Suite 1200, Miami, FL 33131
260 Madison Ave, 16th Floor, New York, NY 10016
800 S. Gay Street, Suite 1200, Knoxville, TN 37929
1775 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 650, Washington, DC 20006
21 Main St, Court Plaza South, Suite 305, Hackensack, NJ 07601
1869 Charter Lane, PO Box 10248, Lancaster, PA 17601
905 Lee Rd, Orlando, FL 32810
2 W Washington St, Suite 400, Greenville, SC 29601
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.