Tongans Found Guilty of RICO.

            Six Utahans accused of being members of the Tongan Crip Gang (“TCG”) were recently found guilty of being part of a racketeering conspiracy. Although the basis of these charges were robberies dating back to 2003, the robberies were not the issue; the charge was that these accused individuals had engaged in Rackateer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (“RICO”), or in other words, “the crime of being a criminal”.  

            RICO was passed in 1970 as a tool for attacking organized crime syndicates seeping into legitimate business (think mobsters taking over the waterfront). However, few RICO prosecutions have dealt with this sort of activity. As one scholar notes, “instead, prosecutors have seized on the virtually unlimited sweep of the language of RICO to bring a wide variety of different prosecutions in the form of RICO indictments.” http://www.ipsn.org/court_cases/rico-crime_of_being_a_criminal.htm

            The basic underpinnings for this expansive use is the definitional hurdles of RICO. What is “organized crime” and what is a “gang” are difficult to define. Utah defines a “criminal street gang” as “an organization, association in fact, or group of three or more persons, whether operated formally or informally; (a) that is currently in operation, (b) that has one of its primary activities the commission of one or more predicate gang crimes; (c) that has as a group, an identifying name or identifying sign or symbol, or both; and (d) whose members, acting individually or in concern with other members, engage in or have engaged in a pattern of criminal gang activity.” Utah Code Ann. § 76-9-802 http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_09_080200.htm.  Reading through this definition, I can only conclude that my Boy Scout troop growing up was most likely a criminal gang.

            It is unfortunate that people can be charged with RICO and face stiff penalties for associating with their friends. As the father of one of the accused individuals stated, “There is no such thing as gang to us. It just means people getting together to have fun.” http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705392059/Verdict-reached-in-RICO-trial-involving-Tongan-Crip-Gang-members.html

            Defending the accused is an important job, as is protecting the accused constitutional rights to assemble. If you are ever accused of RICO, you need to immediately find a good attorney whom you can trust.