Organized Crimes

California and federal defense attorney Nicco Capozzi is an expert in organized crimes, charges and laws.

What Is Organized Crime?

The FBI defines organized crime as "any group having some manner of a formalized structure and whose primary objective is to obtain money through illegal activities. Such groups maintain their position through the use of actual or threatened violence, corrupt public officials, graft, or extortion, and generally have a significant impact on the people in their locales, region, or the country as a whole." The federal government almost always prosecutes this type of crime. The penalties are quite severe and hiring a specialized organized crimes attorney is very important.

Often, organized crimes involves two major types of illegal activity:

What Is a Criminal Enterprise?

A set of individuals who institute a clearly defined hierarchy or structure, who as one group commit very serious criminal activity.

What Is Racketeering?

The "FBI defines significant racketeering activities"as those predicate criminal acts that are chargeable under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute. These are found in Title 18 of the United States Code, Section 1961 (1) and include the following federal crimes:

Bribery

Sports Bribery

Counterfeiting

Embezzlement of Union Funds Mail Fraud

Wire Fraud

Money Laundering

Obstruction of Justice

Murder for Hire

Drug Trafficking

Prostitution

Sexual Exploitation of Children Alien Smuggling

Trafficking in Counterfeit Goods

Theft from Interstate Shipment

Interstate Transportation of Stolen Property

And the following state crimes:

Murder

Kidnapping

Gambling

Arson

Robbery

Bribery

Extortion

Drugs

Seek Legal Counsel

It goes without saying how serious these charges are. If you have been charged with a crime classified under a organized crime, you need to hire an experienced defense attorney.