RACKETEER INFLUENCED & CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS RICO FBI
Enacted as part of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970, the Racketeer Influenced & Corrupt Organizations Statute—also called RICO—is tough legislation that capped a 10-year effort by the Justice Department to crack down on Organized Crime. Before the statute’s enactment, authorities prosecuted criminal activity associated with Organized Crime as single storied events, with multi-defendant cases charged as conspiracies. But since these crimes did not consider the pattern of criminal activity involved, crime fighters and victims were often disappointed with the results.
Following World War II and prior to the Kennedy administration, the Justice Department was thought to be more interested in catching spies than prosecuting mobsters and some critics charged the FBI’s Hoover was too occupied pursuing the Communist Party than investigating hit-men. But, in 1957 that changed, when an alert NY trooper discovered Mafiosi figures—including Joseph Bonanno, Carlo Gambino, Vito Genovese, Joseph Proface, and Santos Traficant—had brokered a summit meeting. Because the summit suggested mobsters might be trying to consolidate power, the Justice Department worried investigators might not have the tools needed to combat the growing menace so they approached Congress about improving the FBI’s jurisdiction.
Convinced crime families posed a significant threat, in 1961, Congress passed the Federal Wire Wager Act, the Travel Act, and the Interstate Transportation of Wagering Paraphernalia Act enabling the FBI to target “illegal” bookmaking operations and investigate individuals who traveled/used interstate/foreign facilities to conduct racketeering activity. And in 1968, elected officials also passed the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act permitting investigators to seek court authorized wiretaps and install microphones. But not until the RICO statute did the Justice Department finally realize the full array of legal weaponry needed to combat Organized Crime did crime fighters think they had the tools need to investigate mobsters.
Examining the statute, RICO enables authorities to prosecute “predicate” crimes as racketeering activity—demonstrating the extent or pattern of criminal activity—using a single prosecution. When two or more “predicate” crimes are committed by the same individual—in any 10-year period—investigators can use the RICO statute to prosecute violators. Because the statute permits prosecutors to pursue state violations as well, and seize assets and profits, RICO is not only a powerful weapon against Organized Crime, but White Collar Crime and Public Corruption.
Because he has been responsible for a number of high-profile investigations/prosecutions involving the RICO statute, Mr. WEDICK can be extremely helpful if you’re looking for an investigator with RICO experience.
