RICO Used to Nab Sex Traffickers

Today the Eleventh Circuit handed down a fascinating RICO case involving a cult leader who, along with his followers, shipped little girls back and forth to perform sexual favors.  United States v. Dwight D. York.  It has two of the big topics of white collar crime covered - RICO and structuring.  Add in mail and wire fraud, and you'll basically have a working knowledge of white collar crime.

A typical Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act case has dozens of sub-elements.  And there is a lot of law to learn.  But the law falls nicely into place if you remember two things.  First, RICO doesn't just apply to the mob.  RICO makes it illegal to use any organization to commit crimes, or to commit crimes to take control of an organization, or to spend money gained through racketeering.  An organization can be a business or street gang.  Any affiliation of people that has structure and hierarchy is an organization under RICO.  Second, it has very little to do with what you and I would define as "racketeering."

Specifically, RICO prohibits any person or organization from (1) using or investing money gained from a pattern of racketeering activity; (2) acquiring or maintaining control of an organization through a pattern of racketeering activity; (3) conducting affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity; or (4) conspiring to do (1)-(3). "Racketeering activity" - also known as predicate acts - includes dozens of felonies, including the Mann Act.  (The good part of the Mann Act makes it a crime to ship children across state lines.  The bad part of it makes it a federal crime for an 18-year-old boy to drive across state lines to have sex with his 17-year-old girlfriend.)  A "pattern" generally means two predicate acts spanning anywhere from at least seven months to 10 years.  Thus, if York used his religious cult to ship two kids across state lines over a seven-month to 10-year period, then he's liable under RICO.

Here, York used an organization (United Nation of Nuwaubian Moors) to ship children from Georgia to New York for their members to have sex with them.  He was thus properly convicted under RICO.

I enjoy talking about white collar crimes, so I hope to discuss structuring later today or tomorrow.

Comments

[L Owens]

If you can dig up the Atlanta Journal Constitution article about the cult's Eatonton, GA compound, you will find that it has been on the "must-see" list for day drives around Atlanta. Their mini-Egypt was really incredible...pharaohs, sphinxes and the like.

[Al Carter]

Greetings to all concerned;

August 1, 2005

Dr. Malachi Z. York, and several members of his congregation, were arrested on May 08, 2002 , in the aftermath of a joint invasion by over 300 federal and state law enforcements officers, on the 476 acres of land owned by Dr. York's congregation and known as Tama-Re. This excessive use of force by federal and state government under the disguise of serving a search warrant was unprecedented, and without probable cause in light of the fact that Dr. York and his congregation had no known or reported history of violence or ever advocated violence in the state of Georgia .

This community has undergone great trials and tribulations as a result of the questionable arrest, trial, and conviction of Dr. Malachi Z. York; In addition to the unjust removal of his community from its 476 acres, of land, that was given to the U.S. government, as a result of child molestation and RICO convictions.

The Racketeering, Influenced, Corrupt, Organization, (RICO) was enacted by Congress around 1970, to give a death kneel to the Mafia. Federal prosecutors have overzealously and systematically undermined the intent of Congress, by the misapplication of the RICO act to depict Black spiritual leadership as Mafia dons, and their congregations as organized crime enterprises. These apparent misuses of the law resulted in long prison terms for that leadership, taken property, and drained the congregation of all assets, which effectively destroys the congregation. Dr. York and his congregation had no known or reported history of organized or unorganized criminal activities in the state of Georgia .

During the three year legal ordeal of Dr. York and his congregation, the federal and state government under the “Dual Sovereignty Doctrine”, conducted a joint prosecution of Dr. York on a federal and state child molestation indictment. Dr. York, under the great weight of ineffective assistance of counsel, biased negative media, probable improper federal and state prosecutorial and judicial misconduct, and internal and external sabotage, entered into a plea agreement on or about January 23, 2003 , in both federal and state courts. A federal judge later rejected Dr. York's federal plea, deciding that Dr. York should have received a longer sentence than what was agreed upon by federal prosecutors and Dr. York's attorneys. Dr. York's attorneys, made no effort to defend him from the Dual Sovereignty Doctrine, in effect waived Dr. York's rights against due prosecution, which allowed both federal and state governments to simultaneously prosecute Dr. York at the same time. This move against Dr. York by federal and state government was unprecedented, in light of the fact that catholic priest who were similarly charged with the same crime of child molestation as Dr. York, and who could have been prosecuted by the federal government as was Dr. York, had no intervention and prosecution applied to them by the federal government. This apparent “tag team” effort by federal and state government against Dr. York, destroyed his “Presumption of Innocence”, and left Dr. York in a “Double Jeopardy” straight jacket. (click read more)

What is so strange about this apparent ineffectiveness by Dr. York's attorneys is that the same law firm that Dr. York's family had hired for his defense, after a paying a large retainer fee of over $1.5 million dollars, Dr. York's attorneys later will roar with the fury of a lion against federal and state government in the Sullivan murder case. Sullivan, a white man, had been on the run for the alleged murder of his Black socialite wife. Federal and state government, both seeking the prosecution of Sullivan, were met with a strong wall of resistance by Dr. York's former attorneys, who are presently defending Sullivan's right not to be a human punching bag against double jeopardy constitutional violations by federal and state government in the state appellate court.

Dr. York's congregation fed up with the abuses surrounding their leader's defense, protested the ongoing ineffectiveness of counsel misrepresenting Dr. York, and hired several attorneys in addition to obtaining the services of the N.L.P.A. This apparent move resulted in pouring gasoline on the fire of incompetence or deliberate neglect by Dr. York's attorneys. Again, after getting no positive satisfaction concerning Dr. York's legal dilemma, On about December 12, 2003 , Dr. York's congregation hired Lawyer Adrian Patrick, a Black attorney working in Athens Georgia , to break the ineffective assistance of counsel head lock, which had became a “way of life” for Dr. York and his congregation. The congregation apparently after taking an “I'm not going to take it anymore” attitude on December 29, 2003 , terminated chief counsel Ed Garland, for failing to defend his client against mounting government and judicial abuses. Lawyer Adrian Patrick was then delegated as the new “Chief Counsel” for Dr. York six days before Dr. York's federal trial.

Mr. Patrick, who had to weather the storm of over two years of gross incompetence and neglect that was placed in his lap by the other attorneys in this case, was not allowed by the residing federal judge to have a “continuance' to prepare for trial. The message that the trial judge had implied in essence: “that because you are now the new chief counsel, does not mean that your client has the right to prepare for trial."

The trial began on January 5, 2004, on “close circuit T.V”, anonymous jury, in effect closing the courtroom which was clearly in violation Dr. York's and his congregations right to face there accusers and jury, Lawyer Adrian Patrick single handedly waged a battle in that courtroom for over three weeks. Lawyer Adrian Patrick had placed over forty two(42) witnesses on the stand in defense of Dr. York, in spite of the fact the Dr. York's previous attorneys, (had they not been terminated) were not going to put any witnesses on the stand at trial on behalf of Dr. York.

By the end of the three week trial that resulted in an almost “hung jury” when the jury sent a note to the residing judge asking him to relieve an elderly black juror, claiming that the lone juror had a problem with several of the thirteen accounts against Dr. York. Another note was sent stating that the lone juror had said: “they are out to get him” ( York ) and that she knew of a case where a person was convicted, but later found innocent. This assessment by this juror clearly demonstrated that she was determine to take as long as it takes to render a just verdict, but the other jurors were not going to waste anymore time(One day was enough) past the first day in deciding Dr. York's fate. Within one hour, the lone elderly juror came in with a “forced” verdict.

In light of the fact that Dr. York had pleaded guilty earlier in both federal and state courts, he received some of the worst negative pretrial publicity by the news media, and ineffective assistance by his attorneys throughout his case. Lawyer Adrian Patrick had prevailed and won two “not guilty” accounts out of thirteen, and put forth a “blockbuster” appeal that may go hand in hand with what that lone elderly juror had said, when she stated: “she knew of a case where a person was convicted, but later found innocent”