Top Running Springs, CA RICO Lawyers Near You
900 West Jackson Blvd., Suite 7E, Chicago, IL 60607
4275 Executive Square, Suite 200, La Jolla, CA 92037
White Plains Center, 50 Main Street, Suite 1000, White Plains, NY 10606
1745 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Southwest, Atlanta, GA 30314
12531 High Bluff Drive, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92130
1518 Willow Lawn Drive, Suite 200, Richmond, VA 23230
17 North Second Street, 18th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17101
1001 Water St, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 33602
23358 Gratiot Ave, Eastpointe, MI 48021
5 Sylvan Way, Suite 110, Parsippany, NJ 07054
1055 Washington Blvd, 4th Floor, Stamford, CT 06901
2029 Century Park E, Suite 1200, Los Angeles, CA 90067
1200 Prospect Street, Suite G100, La Jolla, CA 92037
1 W Pennsylvania Ave, Suite 905, Towson, MD 21204
999 18th St, Suite 3000, Denver, CO 80202
750 East Pratt Street, Suite 900, Baltimore, MD 21202
331 Newman Springs Rd, River Centre Building 1, Red Bank, NJ 07701
1211 NW Glisan St, Suite 203, Portland, OR 97209
315 Fifth Ave S, Suite 1000, Seattle, WA 98104
4501 Tamiami Trail N, Suite 350, Naples, FL 34103
2000 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Suite 6000, Washington, DC 20006
365 Rifle Camp Rd, Woodland Park, NJ 07424
1313 Market St, Suite 1000, Wilmington, DE 19801
One Federal Street, 27th Floor, Boston, MA 02110
32255 Northwestern Highway, Suite 190, Farmington Hills, MI 48334
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.