During a Mar. According to the New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the president’s impeachment investigation is a” category,” not a crime but rather a” category,” according to RICO.
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Verdict: Misleading
While three specialists told Test Your Truth that Ocasio- Cortez’s claim is false, another said he had” no problem with her speech”.
Point Test:
During the Mar. 21 prosecution probe into Biden, Ocasio- Cortez claimed RICO is certainly a crime but somewhat a” group” while questioning Tony Bobulinski, the ex- business partner of Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. The congresswoman pressed Bobulinski to brand any potential crimes that the president is reportedly guilty of. The sensor was led by the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
The state is misleading. According to the U. S. Department of Justice’s ( DOJ) website, the RICO statute is Title IX of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970. The DOJ claims that the statute “is properly large to cover illegal activities relating to any enterprise affecting interstate or international commerce,” despite the focus of the statute on” the elimination of the infiltration of prepared crime and racketeering into reputable organizations operating in federal commerce.”
According to the Legal Information Institute’s website, the statute “enhances existing legal consequences and creates fresh causes of action for acts committed as part of an organized legal enterprise.” While the legislation actually took aim at the mafia, it is now used to pin “many significant legal enterprises”, the same website indicates.
In addition, a 2021 document made available via the Congressional Research Service ( CRS ) states that” RICO condemns any person who uses for or invests in, acquires, maintains an interest in, conducts or participates in the affairs of, or conspires to invest in, acquire, or conduct the affairs of an enterprise, which engages in, or whose activities affect, interstate or foreign commerce through the collection of an unlawful debt, or the patterned commission of various state and federal crimes.” ( RELATED: Joe Biden Claims Robert Hur Brought Up His Son’s Death )
RICO violations can carry multiple punishments, including up to 20 years in prison ( or longer depending on predicate offenses ), according to the same document.
Three experts told Check Your Fact that Ocasio- Cortez’s claim was not accurate, another said he had” no issue with her statement”.
Zack Smith, a senior legal fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, told Check Your Fact via phone that Ocasio- Cortez’s claim about RICO just being a category is “inexact”.
” AOC’s statement that]RICO] is just a category is inexact. RICO does not necessarily criminalize conduct that is not already criminalized, but if certain conditions are met, it allows for the imposition of enhanced penalties, either civil or criminal”, Smith said.
Reiterating that Ocasio- Cortez’s claim “is not really accurate”, Smith noted RICO is a” separate provision and it would be charged as a separate offense in]an ] indictment. Someone could be charged with RICO as a count in]an ] indictment. Someone can be charged under the RICO statute, so in that sense, it is a separate criminal offense”, he explained.
Michael Mears, an associate professor at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School, shared a similar perspective.
” If she’s trying to minimize a RICO criminal statute and say that’s not a crime, then she’s wrong. Despite having a variety of crimes under its purview, the RICO statute has specific penalties. On each count, a maximum prison sentence of not less than five and up to 20 years is served. In Georgia, there’s a wider range, ]so] a larger number of crimes that support RICO convictions”, Mears explained to Check Your Fact by phone.
” Georgia’s RICO statute is broader than the federal law, which was passed in 1970. Georgia’s ]statute ] was passed in 1980]because lawmakers ] wanted to make it broader and more easily prosecuted” . ,
” ]In] Georgia, in order to sustain a RICO conviction, it only takes one of those underlying crimes available ,]while ] the federal law requires two]crimes ] in order to sustain a RICO conviction”, Mears added.
G. Robert Blakey, an emeritus professor at the University of Notre Dame’s Law School, said Ocasio- Cortez is “misinformed”.
” She is misinformed. RICO was based on the antitrust and securities laws, which impose both criminal and civil penalties for those who violated them, Blakey explained via email.
Jeff Grell, attorney and author of” Grell on RICO”, offered a different perspective, however.
” I understand what she’s saying. A RICO violation ca n’t occur unless an underlying’ crime’ is committed, e. g., wire fraud, murder, extortion, etc. Under RICO, these crimes are occasionally referred to as “predicate acts.” Only certain crimes qualify as ‘ predicate acts’ or ‘ acts of racketeering,'” Grell told Check Your Fact via email.
So, I believe she’s basically saying that only certain crimes fall under the RICO definition of predicate acts or that they fall under that category. In addition to proving predicate acts, a RICO prosecutor or plaintiff also needs to prove enterprise, operation/management, pattern, etc. The commission of a predicate crime is just one component of a RICO offense. RICO is a crime in that it is based on criminal activity, but the actual crimes are specified in their own statutes. Proof of more than just the predicate crime is required for a RICO violation.
” In short, I’ve got no issue with her statement”, he said.
Besides the recent Biden impeachment probe, RICO has also been mentioned in relation to Trump’s indictment in Georgia, where he is accused of alleged 2020 election interference.
Ocasio-Cortez’s office and several other legal experts have been contacted by Check Your Fact for comment, and they will update this article if one is received.
