Top Fort Defiance, AZ RICO Lawyers Near You
301 S College St, 23rd Floor, Charlotte, NC 28202
100 Summer Street, Suite 2250, Boston, MA 02110
777 East Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53202-5306
212 West Gay Street, West Chester, PA 19380
29199 Ryan Road, Warren, MI 48092
1050 30th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007
300 Delaware Avenue, Suite 1010, Wilmington, DE 19801
300 Ottawa Avenue NW, Suite 810, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
135 Portage Trail, PO Box 374, Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44222
1717 K Street NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20006
415 Washington Street, Suite 103, Waukegan, IL 60085
7 Waterfront Plaza, 500 Ala Moana Boulevard, Suite 7400, Honolulu, HI 96813
9132 Strada Place, Suite 301, Naples, FL 34108
100 North Broadway, Suite 1700, Oklahoma City, OK 73102
1055 Washington Blvd., Stamford, CT 06901-2249
16102 Chagrin Blvd, Suite 112, Cleveland, OH 44120
104 E. Houston Street, Suite 300, Marshall, TX 75670
14 Wall St, Suite 6B, New York, NY 10005
2725 Horse Pen Creek Rd, Suite 101, Greensboro, NC 27410-8392
401 B St, Ste 2330, San Diego, CA 92101
5609 Clarion Cove, Austin, TX 78746
438 Main Street, 10th Floor, Buffalo, NY 14202
1990 Post Oak Blvd, Suite 2400, Houston, TX 77056
22 Little West 12th Street, New York, NY 10014
7700 N Kendall Dr, Suite 504, Miami, FL 33156
Fort Defiance RICO Information
Lead Counsel Verified Attorneys in Fort Defiance
Lead Counsel independently verifies RICO attorneys in Fort Defiance and checks their standing with Arizona bar associations.
Our Verification Process and Criteria
Ample Experience
Attorneys must meet stringent qualifications and prove they practice in the area of law they’re verified in.
Good Standing
Be in good standing with their bar associations and maintain a clean disciplinary record.
Annual Review
Submit to an annual review to retain their Lead Counsel Verified status.
Client Commitment
Pledge to follow the highest quality client service and ethical standards.
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.