Common defenses to federal racketeering charges include the following: 1_ The unlawful activities were not interrelated. A defendant may be convicted under RICO only if the racketeering offenses he/she allegedly carried out were connected. If the government falls short of proving that any illegal activities were part of a cohesive pattern of criminal activity, then the RICO case should not stand. 2) The defendant did not act willfully. A key element of most RICO offenses is that the defendant deliberately broke the law. If the defense attorney can show that the defendant lacked criminal intent, then the prosecutor's criminal case may fall apart. 3) The police committed misconduct. Prosecutors rely on thorough police searches to find evidence to prove that the defendant committed racketeering. But occasionally police cut corners and seize evidence without a warrant (or without a legal reason to forgo getting a warrant). In such cases, the defense lawyer could file a motion to suppress evidence, which requests that the court disregard the unlawfully obtained evidence. If the court agrees with the motion, the prosecution could be left with insufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.