Not being a lawyer or anything I was pondering this: if they indict Rove, Libby and name Cheney and one or two others as "unindicted" co-conspirators (yes, you know who I mean), couldn't they seek a prosection under RICO if not the espionage acts? I mean if they formed a criminal conspiracy to lie and suppress evidence or give false statements and can be shown to have acted in concert (like they never, ever talk to each other, right?), wouldn't RICO be an option?
I mean, this is a criminal enterprise...it would be only fitting. IMHO.
posted by Jo Fish on 10.27.05 at 09:31 AM
Comments:
I'm not sure, but I think the point of having "undicted" co-conspirators is to leave the door open to do just what you suggest.
The short answer RICO is "probably not applicable" here.
If you read this website description, it will explain why this is related to certain types of crimes lumped under a theory of "racketeering" with a figurehead in control:
"Although the RICO Act can be used in many contexts, the statute is most easily understood in its intended context: the Mafia. In the context of the Maifa, the defendant person (i.e., the target of the RICO Act) is the Godfather. The "racketeering activity" is the criminal activities in which the Mafia engages, e.g., extortion, bribery, loan sharking, murder, illegal drug sales, prostitution, etc. Because the Mafia family has engaged in these criminal actions for generations, the criminal actions constitute a pattern of racketeering activity. The government can criminally prosecute the Godfather under RICO and send him to jail even if the Godfather has never personally killed, extorted, bribed or engaged in any criminal behavior. The Godfather can be imprisoned because he operated and managed a criminal enterprise that engaged in such acts. Moreover, under section 1964(c) of the RICO Act, the victims of the Mafia family (i.e., the extorted businessman, the employers whose employees were bribed, debtors of the loan shark, the family of a murder victim) can sue the Godfather civilly and recover the economic losses they sustained by reason of the Mafia family's pattern of racketeering."
However, the potential Civil Rights violations seem much more likely. And can't ya just imagine the conversation (overheard by people) withe the typical "Rovian" pay-back of "We'll destroy him. Wilson will NEVER work in Washington again...yada, yada, yada."
There is one thing else to consider for RICO charges. The Cheney mob conspired to defraud the government of all that we invested to set up Mrs. Willson as a undercover agent. Training, setting up fronts, etc. I'm sure that it was a nice sum of money. Defrauding the government of $$$ is a charge covered by RICO laws.
posted by: J. Mantz on 10.27.05 at 06:50 PM [permalink]
My problem with using RICO is that RICO is bad legislation and should be repealed no matter whether or not it can be used against your political enemies. The rights it tromps upon (guilt by association, unreasonable search/seizure of property, due process, etc.) are more important.
