RICO, n. and a. U.S. Law.
Brit. /ˈriːkəʊ/, U.S. /ˈrikoʊ/
[Acronym < the initial letters of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal statute forming part of the Organized Crime Control Act, passed by the U.S. Congress in 1970.
It has been suggested that the name and acronym were chosen after the name of the character Rico in the U.S. gangster film Little Caesar (1930), but there is no firm evidence to support this.]
A. n. The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal statute originally created to prosecute participants in organized crime.
| 1972 Syracuse (N.Y.) Post-Standard 13 Apr. 5/3 What he wasn't aware of goes under the code name of ‘RICO’... This is the newest thing inside the Justice Dept. 1990 Publisher's Weekly 2 Nov. 10/4 RICO has been used instead to reach a broad variety of violations of federal law, including antiobscenity and child-pornography statutes. 2000 R. Barger et al. Hell's Angel xii. 214 The dangerous aspect of RICO is how the prosecution can go about proving a ‘conspiracy of enterprise’—how the members are all partners in crime. 2006 National Post (Toronto) (Nexis) 5 Jan. a17 To be prosecuted under RICO, an individual must first be charged with two or more racketeering offences—such as murder, kidnapping, arson, bribery and extortion. |
B. adj. Designating or relating to RICO; made or established under the provisions of this act.
| 1975 Use of Civil Remedies in Organized Crime Control (National Assoc. Attorneys General) 6 Title IX of the federal Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 created the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, commonly referred to as the ‘RICO’ statute. 1979 Chron.-Telegram (Elyria, Ohio) 6 July a9/2 The RICO Statute is a relatively new tool at the disposal of federal law enforcement authorities. 1990 Vanity Fair May 113/1 RICO indictments (which allow prosecutors to charge that any crime committed is part of a larger pattern of organized racketeering)..have filled the prisons with Mob members. 2000 K. Reichs Deadly Décisions xviii. 145 Predicate acts are often important in RICO investigations, especially old homicides. |