NCJ Number
99346
Date Published
1985
Length
128 pages
Annotation
In providing informal guidance for Federal prosecutors on the criminal aspect of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), this manual discusses important legal issues and advises prosecutors on preparing legally sufficient indictments that conform to the approval guidelines of the U.S. Justice Department's Criminal Division.
Abstract
The manual's introduction provides an overview of the criminal violations specified in RICO. RICO definitions are reviewed in the manual's second section. The definitions encompass 'racketeering activity,' 'State,' 'person,' 'enterprise,' 'pattern of racketeering activity,' 'unlawful debt,' 'racketeering investigator,' 'racketeering investigation,' 'documentary materials,' and 'Attorney General.' Court cases are cited to indicate how Federal courts have interpreted these terms. The manual's third section details the nature of the four criminal violations specified in RICO's section 1962. RICO's penalties are explained in the manual's fourth section. This section considers imprisonment, fines, and forfeitures. Guidelines for the use of RICO, discussed in the fifth section, contain criteria for deciding whether or not to include a RICO violation in an indictment. Advice for drafting the indictment encompasses structure; multiplicity; duplicity; single and multiple conspiracies; severance, joinder, and prejudicial spillover; statute of limitations; and double jeopardy. Other issues considered in the manual's final section are the liberal construction clause, Wharton's Rule, mens rea, connection to organized crime, RICO's constitutionality, electronic surveillance, special verdicts, and venue. A total of 200 footnotes are included.