Top Running Springs, CA RICO Lawyers Near You
100 Front Street, Worcester, MA 01608
1360 East 9th Street, Suite 650, Cleveland, OH 44114
6303 Owensmouth Ave., 10th Floor, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
45 Exchange Blvd, Suite 800, Rochester, NY 14614
1875 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1110, Washington, DC 20009
10265 Science Center Dr, San Diego, CA 92121
609 Main St, Suite 3550, Houston, TX 77002
130 Washington St, Hartford, CT 06106
426 W Lancaster Ave, Suite 200, Devon, PA 19333
8150 N Central Expy, Suite M1101, Dallas, TX 75206
10250 Constellation Blvd., Suite 1100, Los Angeles, CA 90067
44 East Mifflin St, Suite 1000, Madison, WI 53703
1201 North Market St, Suite 501, Wilmington, DE 19801
2 Penn Center, Suite 1815, 1500 JFK Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19102
10 N. Ludlow Street, Suite 200, Dayton, OH 45402
212 North Westover Boulevard, PO Box 71209, Albany, GA 31708
40 Wall Street, 54th Floor, New York, NY 10005
201 N Tryon St, Suite 1400, Charlotte, NC 28202
245 N Waco Ave, Suite 125, Wichita, KS 67202
227 W Monroe St, Suite 4700, Chicago, IL 60606
10101 Reunion Place, Suite 600, San Antonio, TX 78216
324 East Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 1400, Milwaukee, WI 53202
1471 Iyannough Road, PO Box 1630, Hyannis, MA 02601
One International Place, Suite 3900, Boston, MA 02110
161 North Clark Street, Suite 4300, Chicago, IL 60601
Running Springs 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.