Liberal Construction of RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) (From Techniques in the Investigation and Prosecution of Organized Crime, Volume Three, 1980-See NCJ-93571)

• NCJ Number: 93574
• Author(s): D Eisen
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 73 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Courts that have clung to outdated rules of statutory construction and ignored the plain meaning and liberal construction directive of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) have impeded the congressional goal of attacking racketeering and organized crime and have further eroded public confidence in the legal system.

Abstract

Unless the court decides that a substantial degree of ambiguity exists in the meaning of words, the court should accord the words of the statute their plain meaning. Moreover, courts should rely primarily on the statute's language and the interrelationship between each section before they turn to legislative history. The further the court strays from the statute in its search for meaning, the more likely it will encroach on the legislative lawmaking power. RICO's sanctions apply to any person engaged in the prohibited racketeering activity and to the gains acquired or maintained by those engaging in the prohibited activity. RICO launches a two-pronged attack on the gains of racketeering as well as upon the economic base of racketeering by mandating the seizure of ownership or control of assets upon conviction for a violation. However, in several court cases, both district and circuit courts, by exclusion, narrowed the RICO statute. Their attitude of strict construction defeated rather than carried out the legislative will. A total of 221 footnotes are supplied.