Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/791/489/332426/
Timestamp: 2019-08-20 19:16:48
Document Index: 423420570

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 1962', '§ 371', '§ 1961', '§ 1961', '§ 2314', '§ 1962', '§ 371', '§ 2314', '§ 2314']

United States v. Neapolitan, 791 F.2d 489 (7th Cir. 1986) :: Justia
Justia › US Law › Case Law › Federal Courts › Courts of Appeals › Seventh Circuit › 1986 › United States v. Neapolitan
United States v. Neapolitan, 791 F.2d 489 (7th Cir. 1986)
US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit - 791 F.2d 489 (7th Cir. 1986)
Argued Jan. 16, 1986. Decided May 16, 1986. Rehearing Denied June 11, 1986
These two unrelated cases have been united because they arise out of similar factual settings, auto theft rings in the Chicago area, and because they both pose the question of the scope of a conspiracy to violate the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d). Through these appeals we become the latest in a string of circuits to struggle with what degree of relationship between the defendant and the alleged predicate criminal acts is sufficient to support a conviction for RICO conspiracy under Sec. 1962(d). Based on the literal approach to RICO interpretation adopted by this circuit in Haroco v. American National Bank & Trust Co. of Chicago, 747 F.2d 384 (7th Cir. 1984), affd, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 3291, 87 L. Ed. 2d 437 (1985), we hold that a defendant violates section 1962(d) when he or she enters into an agreement with knowledge that the goal of the conspiracy is the commission of a RICO violation, that is to "conduct or participate in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity." Pursuant to this interpretation the convictions in these two cases are affirmed. Nevertheless it is important to emphasize the differences between RICO conspiracy and conspiracy prohibited by 18 U.S.C. § 371 and the special burden RICO conspiracy imposes on both the crafting of indictments and the conducting of trials.
Neapolitan was named in four of the five alleged acts of mail fraud but was acquitted of all the mail fraud counts by the district judge. Neapolitan then went to trial as the sole defendant charged only with the RICO conspiracy--both Sapit and Cadieux pleaded guilty earlier. The government's theory under section 1962(d) can be summarized briefly. Sapit, Cadieux, and Neapolitan were alleged to have conspired to conduct the affairs of the sheriff's office, the RICO "enterprise" for purposes of this case, see 18 U.S.C. § 1961(4), through a pattern of racketeering activity. The predicate acts constituting the pattern under 18 U.S.C. § 1961(5) were the four alleged acts of mail fraud and eleven specified acts of bribery in violation of Ill.Rev.Stat. ch. 38, Sec. 33-1(d), (e). Of the listed acts of bribery, Neapolitan was identified as having been involved in only one. Thus, with the dismissal of the mail fraud counts against him, Neapolitan's involvement in the conspiracy, as it is sketched in the indictment, is limited to the solicitation of one cash bribe.
Defendants Thomas Covello, Sr., Ralph Mascio, Jr., Joseph W. Hlavach, Antoine A. Turner, Victor Meadows, and Clement A. Messino were all alleged to have been involved in varying degrees in a large scale "chop shop" operation centered around two salvage yards in Chicago, Ashland Auto Wreckers and M & J Auto Wreckers.1 The grand jury returned an eight-count indictment that charged the defendants with seven counts of interstate transportation of stolen goods in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2314 and one count of RICO conspiracy. According to the indictment and the government's briefs on appeal, the evidence, acquired after a prolonged surveillance, established that all the defendants were members of a "de facto" RICO enterprise dedicated to the "processing" of stolen cars. The operations of this auto ring qua enterprise encompassed all aspects of the "chop shop" business.
After a jury trial, all six defendants were found guilty of conspiring to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d), the RICO conspiracy count. Of the remaining seven substantive counts relating to the transportation of specific stolen parts, only Covello was convicted of all seven, for which he received concurrent eight year sentences, and five years probation. Mascio was convicted of six counts of interstate transportation of stolen goods and was sentenced to concurrent terms of four years imprisonment followed by five years probation. Meadows was convicted on two substantive counts, in addition to the RICO charge, and received concurrent three year prison terms followed by five years probation. Turner was convicted only of one count of interstate transport; his four year sentence was suspended in favor of five years conditional probation. The jury acquitted Hlavach and Messino on all seven substantive counts. Each received a four year prison sentence on the conspiracy count, although Hlavach's was suspended in favor of five years probation.
The issues presented in the appeal cannot be easily resolved, and have caused a clear division among the circuit courts that have considered the issue. See Adams v. United States, --- U.S. ----, 106 S. Ct. 336, 88 L. Ed. 2d 321 (1985) (White, J., joined by Burger, C.J., dissenting from a denial of certiorari in a recent RICO conspiracy case). The First and Second Circuits have taken the position that a section 1962(d) conspiracy to violate section 1962(c) requires an agreement to personally commit two acts of racketeering activity. See United States v. Ruggiero, 726 F.2d 913, 921 (2d Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Rabito v. United States, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 118, 83 L. Ed. 2d 60 (1984); United States v. Winter, 663 F.2d 1120, 1136 (1st Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 460 U.S. 1011, 103 S. Ct. 1250, 75 L. Ed. 2d 479 (1983). In contrast, four other circuits require only an agreement that members of the conspiracy will violate section 1962(c) through the commission of two proscribed acts. See United States v. Joseph, 781 F.2d 549, 554 (6th Cir. 1986); United States v. Adams, 759 F.2d 1099, 1116 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 106 S. Ct. 336, 88 L. Ed. 2d 321 (1985); United States v. Tille, 729 F.2d 615, 619 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 156, 83 L. Ed. 2d 93 (1984); United States v. Carter, 721 F.2d 1514, 1529 (11th Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Morris v. United States, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 89, 83 L. Ed. 2d 36 (1984). In fact the Justice Department itself appears to have not resolved its approach. Compare U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO): A Manual for Federal Prosecutors 72 (1985) ("As of mid-1985, it is the policy of the Organized Crime and Racketeering Section that every defendant in a proposed RICO conspiracy count must be shown to have agreed personally to commit two or more racketeering acts"), with the Department of Justice position in the present case.
Our analysis of section 1962(d) is guided by two rules of RICO construction. First, the Supreme Court has consistently adhered to a broad, literal reading of the statute. "This is a lesson not only of Congress' self-consciously expansive language and overall approach, ... but also of its express admonition that 'RICO is to be liberally construed to effectuate its remedial purposes,' Pub. L. 91-452, Sec. 904(a), 84 Stat. 947." Sedima, S.P.R.L. v. Imrex Co., --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 3275, 3286, 87 L. Ed. 2d 346 (1985). See United States v. Turkette, 452 U.S. 576, 586-87, 101 S. Ct. 2524, 2530-31, 69 L. Ed. 2d 246 (1981). See also Haroco, 747 F.2d at 398 (" [I]n RICO, we confront a statute which is not ambiguous but which is, above all, deliberately and extraordinarily broad."). Second, and in some sense more important, it must be stressed that RICO is a remedial, as opposed to substantive, statute. See Sedima, 105 S. Ct. at 3286-87; Turkette, 452 U.S. at 589, 101 S. Ct. at 2531. See also The Statement of Findings of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970, 84 Stat. 923 (Congressional purpose is "to seek the eradication of organized crime in the United States ... by establishing new penal prohibitions, and by providing enhanced sanctions and new remedies to deal with the unlawful activities of those engaged in organized crimes."). The provisions of section 1962 do not create "new crimes" but serve as the prerequisites for the invocation of increased sanctions for conduct which is proscribed elsewhere in both federal and state criminal codes. See Blakey & Gettings, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO): Basic Concepts-Criminal and Civil Remedies, 53 Temp.L.Q. 1009, 1021 (1980) ("RICO is not a criminal statute; it does not make criminal conduct that before its enactment was not already prohibited, since its application depends on the existence of 'racketeering activity' that violates an independent criminal statute. In addition, its standards of unlawful, i.e., criminal or civil conduct are sanctioned by both criminal and civil remedies. RICO, in short, is a 'remedial' statute."). Thus, the use of the term "RICO conspiracy," to the extent it is used to refer to a substantive offense that is distinct from any other conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. § 371, is to some extent a misnomer. Section 1962(d), like the section's other provisions, is only applicable when the defendant has violated other laws in a context that implicates RICO.
The decision in Carter can be viewed as resting on three basic analytical premises. First, Congress did not explicitly impose through the language of the statute any requirement of agreement personally to commit two predicate acts. Second, the addition of a requirement of an agreement personally to commit the acts would frustrate the Congressional policy of broadening the scope of remedies available to fight organized crime. Finally, RICO was enacted "against the backdrop of hornbook conspiracy law." Carter, 721 F.2d at 1529 (citing United States v. Elliott, 571 F.2d 880, 902 (5th Cir. 1978)).3 Under classic conspiracy law, agreeing to the commission of the conspiracy's illegitimate objectives constitutes the crime. The goal of a RICO conspiracy as defined by section 1962(d), is a violation of RICO. The defendant need only agree to a single violation of RICO; he need not agree personally to violate the statute. The Carter analysis has been embraced by the Third Circuit, the Sixth Circuit, and the Ninth Circuit. See United States v. Joseph, 781 F.2d 549, 554 (6th Cir. 1986); United States v. Adams, 759 F.2d 1099, 1116 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 106 S. Ct. 336, 88 L. Ed. 2d 321 (1985); United States v. Tille, 729 F.2d 615, 619 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 156, 83 L. Ed. 2d 93 (1984).
In contrast to Carter, the First and Second Circuits have, without extensive analysis, adopted a requirement of agreement personally to commit predicate acts. See Ruggiero, 726 F.2d at 921; Winter, 663 F.2d at 1136. Serving as the basis for these decisions, and the arguments of the defendants, are a series of RICO conspiracy cases, including this court's decision in United States v. Martino, 648 F.2d 367 (5th Cir. 1981), which reached somewhat nebulous conclusions. The holdings of these cases with regard to the issue before this court is summarized in the following quote from United States v. Bright, 630 F.2d 804, 834 (5th Cir. 1980):
See Melton, 689 F.2d at 683; United States v. Tillett, 763 F.2d 628, 633 (4th Cir. 1985); United States v. Phillips, 664 F.2d 971, 1038-39 (5th Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 457 U.S. 1136, 102 S. Ct. 2965, 73 L. Ed. 2d 1354 (1982); United States v. Martino, 648 F.2d 367, 395-96 (5th Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 456 U.S. 943, 102 S. Ct. 2006, 72 L. Ed. 2d 465 (1982); United States v. Elliott, 571 F.2d 880, 901-03 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 439 U.S. 953, 99 S. Ct. 349, 58 L. Ed. 2d 344 (1978). See also United States v. Lee Stoller Enterprises, Inc., 652 F.2d 1313, 1320-21 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 1082, 102 S. Ct. 636, 70 L. Ed. 2d 615 (1981). Clearly the question of what the language quoted above means has not been addressed by the cases which serve as the basis for interpreting section 1962(d) as requiring an agreement of personal commission. See supra note 3.
Simply stating that section 1962(d) does not mandate a new concept of conspiracy does not resolve the question of which of the two alternatives best comports with traditional conspiracy law and the purpose of RICO. The argument for the superiority of the Carter approach is best presented in the negative. Section 1962(d) explicitly prohibits conspiracies to violate RICO. The natural reading of that phrase is the proscription of any agreement the object of which is the conducting of or participation in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity. In other words, rather than creating a new law of conspiracy, RICO created a new objective for traditional conspiracy law--a violation of sections 1962(a), (b), or (c). See United States v. Sutherland, 656 F.2d 1181, 1192-93 (5th Cir. 1981); Elliott, 571 F.2d at 902-03. Requiring an agreement personally to commit two predicate acts would establish a new form of conspiring in contradistinction to section 1962(d)'s base in traditional conspiracy law. Under the defendants' theory section 1962(d) would require not only an agreement to join in the conspiracy's objective, a RICO violation, but also an agreement to personally commit the underlying offense through the commission of two predicate acts.4 This involves a degree of involvement in the affairs of the conspiracy that is not required in any other type of conspiracy, where agreeing to a prescribed objective is sufficient.
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Senate Committee on Government Operations, Organized Crime and Illicit Traffic in Narcotics, S.Rep. No. 72, 89th Cong., 1st Sess. 2 (1965). Thus, the interpretation of the conspiracy provision presents the recurring theme of RICO jurisprudence: to interpret the statute to its full breadth in order to encompass the congressional goal of convicting insulated ring leaders runs the risk of expanding the net so wide that unintended fringe actors are also brought within the purview of RICO. While the issue involved here offers a number of tough policy questions the decision in favor of broad construction has been made both in the Supreme Court and this circuit. See Sedima, S.P.R.L. v. Imrex Co., --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 3275, 3286-89, 87 L. Ed. 2d 346 (1985); Turkette, 452 U.S. at 586-87, 101 S. Ct. at 2530-31; Haroco, 747 F.2d at 390-91. We conclude, therefore, that a RICO conspiracy requires only an agreement to conduct or participate in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity. Under this approach it is only necessary that the defendant agree to the commission of the two predicate acts on behalf of the conspiracy.
First, as was discussed above, the defendant must manifest his agreement to the objective of a violation of RICO; he need not agree personally to violate the statute. The next step this court must take is to provide a limited explanation of an agreement to violate RICO. From a conceptual standpoint a conspiracy to violate RICO can be analyzed as composed of two agreements (in reality they would be encompassed by the same manifestations of the defendant): an agreement to conduct or participate in the affairs of an enterprise and an agreement to the commission of at least two predicate acts. Thus, a defendant who did not agree to the commission of crimes constituting a pattern of racketeering activity is not in violation of section 1962(d), even though he is somehow affiliated with a RICO enterprise, and neither is the defendant who agrees to the commission of two criminal acts but does not consent to the involvement of an enterprise. United States v. Riccobene, 709 F.2d 214, 224 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 849, 104 S. Ct. 157, 78 L. Ed. 2d 145 (1983); United States v. Sutherland, 656 F.2d 1181, 1189-95 (5th Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 455 U.S. 949, 102 S. Ct. 1451, 71 L. Ed. 2d 663 (1982). See supra note 3. See also U.S. Dept. of Justice, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO): A Manual for Federal Prosecutors 70-71 (1985). If either aspect of the agreement is lacking then there is insufficient evidence that the defendant embraced the objective of the alleged conspiracy.5 Thus, mere association with the enterprise would not constitute an actionable 1962(d) violation. In a RICO conspiracy, as in all conspiracies, agreement is essential.
The second distinctive aspect of a RICO conspiracy is the need to establish the existence of an enterprise. While it is clear from the Supreme Court's decision in Turkette, 452 U.S. at 587, 101 S. Ct. at 2530, and Russello v. United States, 464 U.S. 16, 104 S. Ct. 296-301, 78 L. Ed. 2d 17 (1983), that the term "enterprise" encompasses legitimate entities and de facto illegal enterprises, it is important to emphasize that the term enterprise is not synonymous with the term conspiracy. See United States v. Manzella, 782 F.2d 533, 538 (5th Cir. 1986). Clearly, when the government alleges that the enterprise is a legitimate business the issue does not arise. However, when the prosecution is based on an illegitimate association in fact the proof must establish, and the jury should be instructed to find, that the enterprise does exist and that the enterprise, while it can have the same personal composition as the conspiracy, is a distinct entity. While the hallmark of conspiracy is agreement, the central element of an enterprise is structure. An enterprise must be more than a group of people who get together to commit a "pattern of racketeering activity."
United States v. Anderson, 626 F.2d 1358, 1372 (8th Cir. 1980), cert. denied, 450 U.S. 912, 101 S. Ct. 1351, 67 L. Ed. 2d 336 (1981). See also Turkette, 452 U.S. at 583, 101 S. Ct. at 2528; United States v. Bascaro, 742 F.2d 1335, 1362 (11th Cir. 1984); United States v. Phillips, 664 F.2d 971, 1011 (5th Cir. 1981); Instituto Nacional de Comercializacion Agricola v. Continental Illinois National Bank, 576 F. Supp. 991, 999 (N.D. Ill. 1983). Cf. United States v. Weinstein, 762 F.2d 1522, 1537 (11th Cir. 1985).
First, it is well-established that the government cannot attempt to prove crimes at trial that were not identified in the indictment.6 The defendant is entitled to an indictment that states all of the elements of the offense charged, informs him of the nature of the charge so that a defense can be prepared, and enables the defendant to evaluate any possible double jeopardy problems presented by the charge. United States v. Gironda, 758 F.2d 1201, 1209 (7th Cir. 1985). See United States v. Miller, --- U.S. ----, 105 S. Ct. 1811, 1815, 85 L. Ed. 2d 99 (1985); United States v. Mosley, 786 F.2d 1330, 1333-1334 (7th Cir. 1986). The government contends that the unspecified predicate crimes are not charged offenses but are more analogous to evidentiary support which need not be in the indictment and can be obtained through a bill of particulars. Thus, it would be sufficient, according to this argument, for the indictment to state that the defendant engaged in various acts of bribery. This argument misconceives the nature of any RICO offense. Under the statutory scheme the predicate acts are not only important "elements of the crime" but they are also, by definition, distinct offenses. Because RICO provides increased penalties for the commission of these predicate crimes in a specified context, see supra part II, the failure to specify the underlying criminal activity in the indictment can effectively preclude the exact identification of what is being charged. RICO cannot be viewed as a complete offense distinct from the underlying crimes upon which it is based. See generally United States v. Martino, 648 F.2d 367, 396 (5th Cir. 1981) ("Absent a charge and proof of an agreement to commit two of the specified predicate crimes, a defendant cannot be convicted of conspiring to participate in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity.") (emphasis added).
Second, and as a corollary to the first point, it must be stressed that the government, through its ability to craft indictments, is the master of the scope of the charged RICO conspiracy. A section 1962(d) conspiracy is not a new generic category of conspiracy but a specific goal of traditional conspiracy law. This section of RICO is capable of providing for the linkage in one proceeding of a number of otherwise distinct crimes and/or conspiracies through the concept of enterprise conspiracy. The government, through the vehicle of the indictment, provides the linking conspiratorial objective of a specific RICO violation. United States v. Sutherland, 656 F.2d 1181, 1191-93 (5th Cir. 1981). The "specific" violation can be broad or narrow depending on the number of predicate crimes within the scope of the agreement that the government chooses to identify. It is the prosecution which sets the parameters to which a RICO conspiracy trial must be confined; having set the stage, the government must be satisfied with the limits of its own creation. Thus, crimes allegedly committed by or agreed to by Neapolitan that do not appear in the indictment cannot serve as predicate acts for purposes of RICO. While these acts would be admissible as circumstantial evidence that Neapolitan was a member of a conspiracy, they are actions outside the scope of the specific RICO conspiracy charged in this case and are, thus, irrelevant to establishing that Neapolitan agreed to the commission of a pattern of racketeering activity as defined by the present indictment.
None of the deficiencies discussed above, however, calls for a change in the result of this trial. If one excludes the evidence of unindicted crimes there is still substantial evidence upon which a rational trier of fact could have found the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S. Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L. Ed. 2d 560 (1979). A RICO conspiracy, like all conspiracies, does not require direct evidence of agreement; an agreement can be inferred from the circumstances. See Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80, 62 S. Ct. 457, 469, 86 L. Ed. 2d 680 (1942); United States v. Percival, 56 F.2d 600, 607 (7th Cir. 1985); United States v. Shelton, 669 F.2d 446, 451 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 456 U.S. 934, 102 S. Ct. 1989, 72 L. Ed. 2d 454 (1982).
The indictment listed seven specific incidents of the interstate transportation of stolen car parts. These counts were incorporated into the RICO conspiracy count as the predicate acts forming the pattern of racketeering activity. The government does not claim to have direct evidence that the particular parts at issue are traceable to specific automobiles that can be identified. It is not necessary, however, that the government present direct evidence of theft. Theft can be established through circumstantial evidence. See United States v. Drebin, 557 F.2d 1316, 1328 (9th Cir. 1977); United States v. DeKunchak, 467 F.2d 432, 435-36 (2d Cir. 1972).
The evidence relied upon by the government, obtained through extensive surveillance, indicated that the ring leaders, defendants Mascio and Covello, presided over a large car theft operation that started with the "ordering" of specified automobiles, the processing of the auto parts, including obliteration of all vehicle identification numbers, and the eventual wholesaling out of the parts to salvage yards in Indiana and Iowa; that ninety to ninety-five percent of the parts handled by Mascio's and Covello's salvage yards were stolen; that the recipient of the parts, Piper Motor of Bloomfield, Iowa, paid for them by checks issued to fictitious payees and kept falsified invoices reflecting its receipt of the parts; and that Mascio and Covello received these checks and successfully cashed them at cooperative currency exchanges. Given the exceedingly narrow role of an appellate court in reviewing the decisions of the jury, see United States v. Wiehoff, 748 F.2d 1158, 1160-61 (7th Cir. 1984), it cannot be said that there is not sufficient circumstantial evidence from which a jury could rationally infer that the parts specified in Counts Two through Eight of the indictment were in fact stolen. The convictions of Covello, Mascio, Meadows, and Turner for interstate transportation of stolen goods, 18 U.S.C. § 2314 must be affirmed.
It is true that the district court in addressing the jury did make one serious error. In describing "a pattern of racketeering activity" the court erroneously treated the predicate crimes as examples of what could form the pattern by stating that "any act in violation of [18 U.S.C. § 2314], such as charged in Counts 2 through 8 of the indictment" could serve as a predicate act. This invites the jury to do what the government attempted in Neapolitan, that is to exceed the scope of the indicted conspiracy in search of other crimes to serve as predicate acts.
The transcript reveals that this error was in all probability unintended since the government's proposed instruction, from which this was adopted, and the copy of the instructions provided to the jury for use during deliberations do not contain the word "such" but accurately state the law as "racketeering activity ... includes any act ... as charged in ... the indictment." The record indicates that the defendants did not specifically object, as required by Fed. R. Crim. P. 30, to this instruction prior to its use, assuming they had a chance, or following the giving of the charge. Thus, this mistake requires reversal only if it constitutes "plain error." United States v. Jackson, 569 F.2d 1003, 1009 (7th Cir. 1978). Under the circumstances of this case where the jury had the proper instruction before it during its lengthy deliberations and the court's detailed instructions nowhere else invite the jury to exceed the reach of the indictment, it cannot be found that "the instructional mistake had a probable impact on the jury's finding that the defendant was guilty." Jackson, 569 F.2d at 1010. See also United States v. Markowski, 772 F.2d 358, 363 (7th Cir. 1985).
There are two claims made by the defendants which can be grouped together under the general heading of the sufficiency of the evidence. First, defendants Hlavach, Messino, and Turner argue that the insufficiency of the evidence of their agreement to join the RICO conspiracy set forth in the indictment is established by the failure of the jury to convict them of two of the predicate acts of interstate transportation of stolen property despite a Pinkerton instruction.7 Thus, according to these defendants, the jury must have found these acts to be outside the scope of their conspiratorial agreement, a conclusion which cannot be reconciled with a conviction under section 1962(d) predicated on the same acts. This argument is spurious and the jury's conclusions with regard to the substantive crime are irrelevant to the evaluation of the adequacy of the proof underlying the RICO convictions. In United States v. Powell, 469 U.S. 57, 105 S. Ct. 471, 473, 83 L. Ed. 2d 461 (1984), the Supreme Court held that "a criminal defendant convicted by a jury on one count could not attack that conviction because it was inconsistent with the jury's verdict of acquittal on another count." See also United States v. Witvoet, 767 F.2d 338, 339 (7th Cir. 1985). The Court in Powell found this rule to be applicable to situations "where the jury acquits a defendant of a predicate felony, but convicts on the compound felony." 105 S. Ct. at 478. See also United States v. Brooklier, 685 F.2d 1208, 1220 (9th Cir. 1982), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 1206, 103 S. Ct. 1194, 75 L. Ed. 2d 439 (1983).
There is no need to detail the evidence against Meadows or Messino. There is adequate evidence in the record upon which the jury could infer that both were members of the RICO conspiracy and "agreed" to the commission of at least two of the predicate acts. The case against Hlavach is less clear. There is no question that the government established a strong link between the RICO enterprise and Hlavach after November 30, 1981, the date, based on taped phone conversations, when Hlavach commenced actively stealing cars for M & J Auto Wreckers. According to the indictment, only one of the RICO predicate acts occurred after this date. The government responded to this by arguing that the indictment alleges an ongoing conspiracy that did not end until December 31, 1981 and that once found to be a member of a conspiracy the conspirator is liable for actions that occurred prior to his involvement. See United States v. Lynch, 699 F.2d 839, 842 n. 2 (7th Cir. 1982). Both of these points are irrelevant to this case. First, as discussed with respect to Neapolitan, the scope of a RICO conspiracy is determined by the predicate acts, the last of which alleged in this case occurred December 31, 1981. In establishing the scope of the conspiracy the indictment listed a plethora of acts in furtherance of the conspiracy. Nothing prevented the government from classifying all of these acts as composing the pattern of racketeering activity and thereby eliminating almost all of the defendants' objections on appeal. The government elected to limit the predicate acts to seven and Hlavach, like all the defendants, can only be found guilty of the indicted conspiracy within these boundaries. Second, the government's reliance on Lynch is misplaced because retroactive liability is premised on finding that the defendant is a conspirator. However, before liability is extended back in time the government must prove Hlavach was a conspirator which, under RICO, requires proof that he agreed to the commission of the very acts for which retroactive liability is sought. The government cannot use this concept of co-conspirator liability to establish the existence of the conspiracy.
The Fifth Circuit opinion in Elliott is at once the seminal discussion of RICO conspiracy and, in many ways, the root of the current controversy. Both the Carter court, on one side, and the First Circuit in Winter on the other, have ground their interpretations on Elliott. However, a reading of Elliott in conjunction with the later case of United States v. Sutherland, 656 F.2d 1181 (5th Cir. 1981) reveals that the Fifth Circuit had not definitively resolved this issue. The predominate question faced in Elliott was the extent to which multiple conspiracies can be grouped together under the RICO enterprise conspiracy theory. This issue relates to the ability of the government to link those associated with the enterprise but not involved in a particular criminal activity or a conspiracy to commit those crimes. The Sutherland court interpreted Elliott to require multiple conspiracies to be linked by a common objective, the violation of RICO, rather than association with a common enterprise in order to come within the strictures of section 1962(d). 656 F.2d at 1191-93
The Fifth Circuit has determined that in enacting section 1962(d) Congress did not radically alter traditional conspiracy doctrine except to the extent that it proposed a dramatically new conspiratorial objective. An agreement merely to commit the predicate offenses would not be sufficient to support a RICO conspiracy. Nor is it sufficient if the defendants merely participate in the same enterprise. This is so because under RICO, it is an agreement "to conduct or participate ... in the conduct of [an] enterprise's activities" through the commission of predicate offenses that is prohibited, not an agreement to commit a pattern of racketeering activity alone. " [T]he key element is proof that the various crimes were performed in order to assist the enterprise's involvement in corrupt endeavors." Consequently, we agree with the Fifth Circuit that Congress intended that "a series of agreements that under pre-RICO law would constitute multiple conspiracies could under RICO be tried as a single 'enterprise' conspiracy" if the defendants have agreed to commit a substantive RICO offense.
United States v. Riccobene, 709 F.2d 214, 224-25 (3d Cir.) (citations omitted), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 849, 104 S. Ct. 157, 78 L. Ed. 2d 145 (1983). See also Blakey and Goldstock, 'On the Waterfront': RICO and Labor Racketeering, 17 Am.Crim.L.Rev. 341, 360-62 (1980).
The Eleventh Circuit in Carter stated in dicta that if an alleged RICO conspiracy lacks the element of agreement on the objective of a RICO violation then "there is no pattern of racketeering activity unless the defendant supplies the lack by personally agreeing to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity in furtherance of the conspiracy's single objective." 721 F.2d at 1530. While neither of the appeals before this court requires the resolution of this question, it is difficult to embrace the logic of the Carter approach on this point for two reasons. First, the fact that the goal of the conspiracy is the ultimate commission of one criminal act does not preclude that objective from constituting a RICO violation where two predicate acts are required or actually agreed to as part of the conspiracy. See United States v. Starnes, 644 F.2d 673 (7th Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 826, 102 S. Ct. 116, 70 L. Ed. 2d 101 (1982). For example if a conspiracy to commit one act of arson is to be composed of at least two criminal acts it would not seem to strengthen the case for application of section 1962(d) if the defendant personally agreed to commit two acts as opposed to agreeing that the acts will be committed by any of the co-conspirators on behalf of the conspiracy. In either situation the defendant could be deemed, assuming the enterprise connection is established, to have embraced a RICO violation as the conspiratorial objective. Second, as discussed above in the text, consent to the commission of two criminal acts standing alone does not constitute a RICO conspiracy. The defendant must also agree to "conduct or participate in the affairs of the enterprise." Both these elements must be present and together they establish a conspiracy the objective of which is a violation of RICO. Thus, agreeing personally to commit two predicate acts cannot transform the nature of a conspiracy in the absence of an agreement encompassing a RICO violation
This statement is subject to the qualification that certain lesser included offenses, such as attempt or aiding and abetting, need not appear in the indictment. See United States v. Galiffa, 734 F.2d 306, 315 n. 11 (7th Cir. 1984)
Sustaining a charge under the RICO statute does not require showing that the defendant personally agreed to commit two predicate acts.
A police officer, Neapolitan, was charged with taking bribes from a gang of criminals engaged in auto theft in exchange for protecting them. He was charged with mail fraud as well as solicitation of bribes, but he was convicted only of the solicitation count and of violating the RICO statute. His appeal addressed only the RICO violation, and he argued that he had not been convicted of agreeing to two predicate acts.
Joel Martin Flaum (Author)
The core of a RICO violation is an agreement with knowledge that the goal of the conspiracy is to conduct the affairs of the organization through a pattern of racketeering activity, which is defined by law as consisting of at least two acts. However, an individual defendant does not need to have personally agreed to commit at least two acts. Similar to legal principles surrounding conspiracy, the defendant merely needs to agree to join a plan to commit the illegal acts. The defendant was liable here because the enterprise that he agreed to join eventually committed two predicate acts.
The RICO statute was designed to hold individuals liable for crimes without personal involvement, since many leaders of criminal organizations could argue that their illegal activities had been delegated to their subordinates.
Sustaining a charge under the RICO statute does not require showing that the defendant personally ag...
A police officer, Neapolitan, was charged with taking bribes from a gang of criminals engaged in aut...