NEW: Hodgson Calls for RI to Use RICO Law to Combat Gang Violence
Monday, July 28, 2014
Dawson Hodgson, State Senator and Republican candidate for Attorney General, has proposed that state prosecutors use the “RICO Gang Initiative" to fight gang violence.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statue would be used to prosecute and sue members of violent gangs. The 1979 statute makes it illegal to use a criminal enterprise to commit criminal acts including drug dealing, murder, and extortion.
According to Hodgson, the federal version of the law has been used in Rhode Island to prosecute cases ranging from the Latin Kings street gang to declaring Providence city government a criminal enterprise, and convicting city officials of RICO crimes.
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“I want to use this law to describe each violent street gang as a criminal enterprise,” said Hodgson. “I will go after each gang and gang member for using the gang organization to perpetuate what is becoming criminal terrorism in our city and state.” Hodgson explained that violation of Rhode Island RICO is a separate criminal violation punishable by ten years in prison and a $10,000 fine. The gang would also forfeit assets to the state.
"There is also a very valuable civil side to this law,” Hodgson continued. “We can obtain court orders to dismantle these gangs. And, we can ask the court to order that gang members stop functioning in gangs. While I do not believe these criminals will honor the court orders, they will be charged with both criminal and civil contempt if they do not. Contempt can result in prison terms and fines.”
“The police departments already have gathered intelligence on gang activity,” Hodgson said. “We have detectives and prosecutors already dealing with gang violence and a law, although dusty, that is ready for immediate use. Under the leadership of an Attorney General, we will put this powerful tool to work to protect the people.”
Related Slideshow: Providence’s Most Violent Neighborhoods
Each week, the Providence Police Department releases its "Weekly Crime Comparison Report" on its website. The breakdown covers how many crimes have occured in the past week, past month, and year to date in each Police District and comparing them with the same time interval from the year prior, reflecting changes in crime rates. GoLocal has distilled the key data points from this weeks report to reflect YTD crime data grouped by general category- violent, property, other, and total. For the full report as filed by the PPD, click here.
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