Originally, an organized conspiracy to commit extortion. Today, punishable offenses created by Congress to "seek the eradication of organized crime by establishing new penal prohibitions and by providing enhanced sanctions and new remedies to deal with the unlawful activities of those engaged in organized crime." Pub. L. 91-452, §1, 84 Stat. 922 (1970). The federal statute is entitled "racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations act [rico]" under Title IX of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 (18 U.S.C. §§1961-68) and many states have adopted similar statutes, e.g., N.J.S.A. 2C:41-1.1 et seq.
There are four punishable racketeering offenses under the federal statute: (1) directly or indirectly investing income derived from a pattern of racketeering activity or through collection of an unlawful debt in any enterprise affecting trade or commerce; (2) acquiring or maintaining any interest in an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity or collection of an unlawful debt; (3) conducting or participating in the affairs of the enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity or collection of an unlawful debt; or (4) conspiring to violate the racketeering provisions. 18 U.S.C. §1962. See also, N.J.S.A. 2C:41-2a to 2C:41-2d. "Pattern of racketeering activity" requires engaging in at least two incidents of racketeering conduct (specified offenses ranging from murder, kidnapping, criminal usury, and theft to forgery, alteration of motor vehicle identification numbers, and possession or use of firearms or explosives) within 10 years of each other, and where at least one of the incidents occurs after the effective date of the act. Some states also require that there be a showing that the incidents of racketeering are interrelated in some way. The term "enterprise" in the federal act includes any individual, partnership, corporation, or any union or group of individuals associated in fact though not a legal entity, and some states have expanded the meaning to include sole proprietorships, business or charitable trusts, governmental entities, and illicit as well as licit entities. A criminal forfeiture provision is included in the act that allows for forfeiture of "any interest in money or property acquired in violation of the act." 18 U.S.C. §1963. Some state racketeering statutes have civil forfeiture provisions as well. N.J.S.A. 2C:41-4. Finally, the provisions of the acts are directed to be liberally construed to best effect the overall purpose. The acts are felt to be a powerful tool in assisting prosecutors in apprehending and convicting those persons involved in organized crime and are preferred to viable alternatives under traditional conspiracy or professional criminal or habitual offender statutes. See 571 F. 2d 880.
[top]RICO Act in the USA
The
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (commonly referred to as
RICO Act or
RICO) is a United States federal law that provides for extended penalties for criminal acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. RICO was enacted by section 901(a) of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 (Pub.L. 91-452, 84 Stat. 922, enacted 1970-10-15). RICO is codified as Chapter 96 of Title 18 of the United States Code, 18 U.S.C. § 1961–1968. It was intended to make it easier to prosecute organized crime figures, but has been applied in several other cases as well.
It has been speculated that the name and acronym were selected in a sly reference to the movie Little Caesar, which featured a notorious gangster named Rico. The original drafter of the bill, G. Robert Blakey, refused to confirm or deny this.
Under RICO, a person or group who commits any two of 35 crimes—27 federal crimes and 8 state crimes—within a 10-year period and, in the opinion of the United States Attorney bringing the case, has committed those crimes with similar purpose or results can be charged with racketeering. Those found guilty of racketeering can be fined up to $25,000 and/or sentenced to 20 years in prison per racketeering count. In addition, the racketeer must forfeit all ill-gotten gains and interest in any business gained through a pattern of "racketeering activity."
When the U.S. Attorney decides to indict someone under RICO, he has the option of seeking a pre-trial restraining order or injunction to temporarily seize a defendant's assets and prevent the transfer of potentially forfeitable property, as well as require the defendant to put up a performance bond. This provision was placed in the law because the owners of Mafia-related shell corporations often absconded with the assets. An injunction and/or performance bond ensures that there is something to seize in the event of a guilty verdict.
In many cases, the threat of a RICO indictment can force defendants to plead guilty to lesser charges, in part because the seizure of assets would make it difficult to pay a defense attorney. Despite its harsh provisions, a RICO-related charge is considered easy to prove in court, as it focuses on patterns of behavior as opposed to criminal acts.
There is also a provision for private parties to sue. A "person damaged in his business or property" can sue one or more "racketeers." The plaintiff must prove the existence of a "criminal enterprise." The defendant(s) are not the enterprise; in other words, the defendant(s) and the enterprise are not one and the same. There must be one of four specified relationships between the defendant(s) and the enterprise. A civil RICO action, like many lawsuits based on federal law, can be filed in state or federal court.
Both the federal and civil components allow for the recovery of treble damages (damages in triple the amount of actual/compensatory damages).
Although its primary intent was to deal with organized crime, Blakey said that Congress never intended it to merely apply to the Mob. He once told Time, "We don't want one set of rules for people whose collars are blue or whose names end in vowels, and another set for those whose collars are white and have Ivy League diplomas."
[top]RICO offenses
Under the law,
racketeering activity means:
- Any violation of state statutes against gambling, murder, kidnapping, arson, robbery, bribery, extortion, dealing in obscene matter, or dealing in a controlled substance or listed chemical (as defined in the Controlled Substances Act);
- Any act of bribery, counterfeiting, theft, embezzlement, fraud, dealing in obscene matter, obstruction of justice, slavery, racketeering, gambling, money laundering, commission of murder-for-hire, and several other offenses covered under the Federal criminal code (Title 18);
- Embezzlement of union funds;
- Bankruptcy or securities fraud;
- Drug trafficking;
- Money laundering and related offenses;
- Bringing in, aiding or assisting aliens in entering the country (if the action was for financial gain);
- Acts of terrorism.
Pattern of racketeering activity requires at least two acts of racketeering activity, one of which occurred after the effective date of this chapter and the last of which occurred within ten years (excluding any period of imprisonment) after the commission of a prior act of racketeering activity. The U.S. Supreme Court has instructed federal courts to follow the continuity plus relationship test in order to determine whether the facts of a specific case give rise to an established pattern. Predicate acts are related if they "have the same or similar purposes, results, participants, victims, or methods of commission, or otherwise are interrelated by distinguishing characteristics and are not isolated events." H.J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. Continuity is both a closed and open ended concept, referring to either a closed period of conduct, or to past conduct that by its nature projects into the future with a threat of repetition.
[top]Where RICO laws might be applied
Although some of the RICO predicate acts are extortion and blackmail, one of the most successful applications of the RICO laws has been the ability to indict or sanction individuals for their behavior and actions committed against witnesses and victims in alleged retaliation or retribution for cooperating with law enforcement or intelligence agencies.
The RICO laws can be alleged in cases where civil lawsuits or criminal charges are brought against individuals or corporations in retaliation for said individuals or corporations working with law enforcement, or against individuals or corporations who have sued or filed criminal charges against a defendant.
Anti-SLAPP (strategic lawsuit against public participation) laws can be applied in an attempt to curb alleged abuses of the legal system by individuals or corporations who utilize the courts as a weapon to retaliate against whistle blowers, victims, or to silence another's speech. RICO could be alleged if it can be shown that lawyers and/or their clients conspired and collaborated to concoct fictitious legal complaints solely in retribution and retaliation for themselves having been brought before the courts.
[top]External links
CHAPTER 96—RACKETEER INFLUENCED AND CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS
Racketeering suit filed against DirecTV
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL’S GUIDELINES ON GENERAL CRIMES, RACKETEERING ENTERPRISE ANDTERRORISM ENTERPRISE INVESTIGATIONS
FOXNews.com - Seattle Strip Clubs Raided in Racketeering Investigation - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News
Private eye to the stars is guilty - Los Angeles Times
CRM: Organized Crime and Racketeering Section (OCRS)
IRIN Africa | West Africa | Cote d'Ivoire | COTE D'IVOIRE: Racketeering at roadblocks raises food prices | Economy Food Security Governance | Breaking News
Miami RICO Racketeering Attorney | South Florida Conspiracy, Federal Drug Charge, Fraud Lawyer | Fort Lauderdale, Hialeah, Hollywood, FL
Racketeering and Racketeers - News - Times Topics - The New York Times
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/0...ny-other-name/
Pellicano convicted of racketeering - Entertainment News, Pellicano Case, Media - Variety
U.S. Department of Labor - OIG Home Page
Supreme Court Voids Racketeering Conviction of Anti-Abortion Groups in 80's Case - New York Times
Racketeering
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