Top Running Springs, CA RICO Lawyers Near You
1201 W Peachtree St NW, 14th Floor, Atlanta, GA 30309
15 West South Temple, Suite 1200, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
1414 Shroyer Rd, Dayton, OH 45419
10940 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 1600, Los Angeles, CA 90024
724 Bielenberg Drive, Suite 110, Woodbury, MN 55125
25 Monument St, Freehold, NJ 07728
60 E. 42nd Street, 51st floor, New York, NY 10165
4221 W. Boy Scout Blvd, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 33607-5780
321 N. Clark Street, 25th Floor, Chicago, IL 60654
N17W24222 Riverwood Dr, Suite 250, Waukesha, WI 53188
8 Juniper Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949
50 West Liberty Street, Suite 750, Reno, NV 89501
555 Twin Dolphin Drive, 5th Floor, Redwood Shores, CA 94065
45 Rockefeller Plaza, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10111
4200 Somerset, Suite 150, Prairie Village, KS 66208
1018 Preston Street, 7th Floor, Houston, TX 77002
500 Eighth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20004
822 North Monroe Street, Tallahassee, FL 32303
One Indiana Square, Suite 1600, Indianapolis, IN 46204
700 13th Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20005
111 East Court Street, Suite 1B, Flint, MI 48502
1650 Market St, 36th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103
301 South McDowell Street, Suite 602, Charlotte, NC 28204
2800 Ponce de Leon Blvd, Suite 1100, Coral Gables, FL 33134
730 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
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.