A white-collar crime is typically a financial or corporate crime, often carried out by deceptive means. Although white-collar criminal charges are usually brought against individuals, corporations may also be subject to criminal penalties. These penalties may include fines and costs, home electronic monitoring, community confinement, forfeitures, restitution, supervised release, and imprisonment.
As your San Diego White Collar Defense Attorneys, we can protect your rights if arrested, charged or under investigation for any white-collar crime, including:
- Credit Card Fraud
- Embezzlement
- Grand Theft
- Bank-Wire Fraud
- Insurance Fraud
- Welfare Fraud
- Mortgage Fraud
- Real Estate Fraud
- Internet Fraud
- Identity Theft
- Petty Theft
- Securities Fraud
- Check Fraud & Insufficient Funds
- Theft Crimes
- Medicare or MediCal Fraud
- Healthcare Fraud
- Tax Evasion
- Money Laundering
- Bankruptcy Fraud
- Ponzi Schemes & Pyramid Schemes
- Crimes Under RICO
"White Collar Crime" is a term that was first used by a sociologist in 1939 to describe criminal activity by members of the upper classes in connection with their professions; this type of crime was barely acknowledged by the criminal justice system and rarely prosecuted. Today, the most common definition of white collar crime no longer focuses on the social status of the offender but rather on the type of conduct involved : using deceit and concealment to obtain money, property, or services, or to secure a business or professional advantage. There are multiple varieties of white collar crimes, as evidenced by the list above. The most common elements involve unlawfully obtaining a benefit for personal gain. Grand theft, Petty theft, welfare fraud, insurance fraud, mortgage fraud, identity theft, internet fraud, and embezzlement are serious white collar crimes . As your San Diego Fraud Defense Lawyers, at Sam Spital and Associates, we will fight for you.We have the experience, resources, skills and knowledge to improve your chances of a defense verdict and/or prevail with sentencing alternatives.
Mail fraud and wire fraud are also white collar crimes .The federal government has passed a variety of laws in the last fifty or sixty years to deal with the problem of white collar crime, using its jurisdiction under the commerce, postal and taxing powers of the federal Constitution to reach all levels of business activity. The first federal mail fraud statute was passed in 1872 to combat the use of the postal system in counterfeit money schemes. Today's mail fraud statute prohibits the use of the U.S. mail or private carriers in a scheme to defraud or obtain money, property, or services by fraudulent means. Wire fraud is an act that parallels mail fraud by using the internet, wire, radio, or television in a scheme to defraud or obtain property by fraudulent means. The punishment for a violation of these laws is up to five years in prison and a fine. However, if the mail fraud affects a financial institution, the punishment is up to thirty years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.
The Federal Securities Acts of 1933 and 1934 make it a crime, punishable by up to five years in prison, to willfully violate provisions of these acts. The most common prosecutions include insider trading, failing to file required reports, or filing false reports. The government must prove that the lawbreaker committed a deliberate and intentional act with knowledge of wrongdoing. Insider-trading prohibitions originally applied only to a person who used nonpublic material facts learned in the course of his or her job to gain a personal advantage over the shareholders of a corporation by buying or selling the corporate stock. However, the prohibitions have been extended to an "outsider" who uses nonpublic material information to gain an advantage, such as a printer who uses confidential information gained in the course of printing corporate documents to make a profit on the stock market, or a person who acts on indiscreet talk overheard in an elevator.
There are laws prohibiting obstruction of justice, perjury, or false declarations to ensure the integrity of the legal system. It is a crime to assault a process-server, influence a juror through writing, picket, parade, or demonstrate near a courthouse, or record or observe jury deliberations. Perjury is committed when a person willfully and knowingly makes a false statement under oath in a judicial proceeding. A false declaration occurs when a false statement is made to a United States grand jury. In order to gain a conviction, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the statement was in fact false, not merely misleading, and that the person believed the statement was untrue when he or she made it. The penalties for perjury and false declarations are up to five years in prison and a fine.
In order to combat public corruption, the United States Attorney may charge both the crimes of bribery of public officials and filing false statements. It is noteworthy that both the person offering the bribe and the person taking the bribe can receive up to fifteen years in prison and disqualification from public office if convicted of a crime under the act punishing bribery. The government must prove that something of value has been given, offered, or promised to a federal public official to influence an official act. The corrupt official need not actually act, but proof that the official intended to perform the corrupt act is required. If there is no proof that the official intended to commit the corrupt act, he or she can still be charged with accepting gratuities, which only requires that the official sought or accepted something of value. The crime of accepting gratuities carries a two-year prison term. A federal statute originally passed in 1862 to prohibit false statements in the filing of military claims now prohibits making false statements, falsifying material facts, or knowingly using a false document within the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the U.S. government.
Tax crimes are also included under white collar crime . The most common tax crime charged is that of failing to file a federal tax return or failing to pay federal taxes. Other tax crimes involve assisting others to file a false return, interfering with the IRS by force, or the forcible rescue of property that has been seized by the IRS. All tax crimes require the government to prove that the lawbreaker willfully, voluntarily, and intentionally violated a known legal duty. In order to convict on tax evasion, the government must also prove a tax deficiency and an affirmative act of evasion or attempt to evade payment of the tax.
Environmental crimes may be prosecuted against individuals or corporations that violate various federal statutes concerning clean water, safe drinking water, toxic substances, solid waste disposal, pesticide use, clean air, and atomic energy. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) usually investigates complaints and then refers them to a special unit in the Department of Justice for prosecution. Most of the environmental statutes are concerned with regulation of certain industries or practices, but contain criminal penalties for a defendant (individual or corporation) that knowingly violates the provisions of the law. Many statutes have schemes of increasing penalties for repeat violations. Courts have held that corporations can be punished when illegal acts or omissions are committed by corporate agents acting within the scope of their duties for the benefit of the corporation.
Computer crimes, or Internet crimes , were formerly prosecuted under mail or wire fraud statutes. However, in 1984 Congress passed the first criminal statute directly aimed at computer use. Today, the statute prohibits seven kinds of conduct relating to computer use. It is a crime punishable by up to ten years to knowingly access a computer without authorization to obtain confidential national security information and willfully communicate it to one not entitled to receive the information. Other parts of the act criminalize browsing in government or other protected computers in a manner that affects the official use of the computer; gaining unauthorized financial information from banks or government agencies; accessing information in a protected computer to further a scheme of theft; knowingly infecting a computer with a virus that causes damage to the program; interstate trafficking in passwords; and threatening to cause damage to a protected computer for the purpose of extortion. The penalties for violations of the act range from one year to twenty years in prison and fines.
Mortgage Fraud & Real Estate Fraud can include submitting a false application for a loan or as a mortgage broker encouraging an applicant to sign his or her name to a blank application and then "filling in" the blanks with false and untrue statements. Exagerrating one's income or understating expenses are common examples of mortgage fraud. Essentially, any misrepresentation, misstatement &/or omission of a material fact constitutes this type of fraud. Here are additional examples of mortgage fraud : (a) If the seller fails to disclose in the purchasde and sales agreement that he or she is giving a cash kickback to the buyer when the lender is not made aware of the same; (b) falsifying income from employment or a secondary source (e.g. rental income); (c) claiming the property will be owner-occupied when it is an investment property in which renters are contemplated; (d) obtaining a second mortgage from the seller without disclosing it to the lender; (e) inflating the purchase price in the hopes of getting a higher appraisal; and (f) claiming deposits to escrow that are untrue &/or stating there was a deposit made outside of escrow.
Identity Theft occurs when an individual uses another person'sr personally identifying information, like their name, Social Security number, &/or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. These individuals often obtain new driver's licenses, credit cards, bank checks, &/or new cell phone accounts to obtain equipment, supplies, rentals, cash,credit and financing.
There are a number of ways this crime is perpetrated : (a) the old fashioned way is to steal another person's wallet &/or mail to obtain pre-approved credit cards, checks, bank and credit card statements,&/or obtain employment records that contain critical information (social security numbers, date of birth, etc.); (b) rummaging through another person's garbage can during the early morning hours before the trash is picked up; (c) using special storage devices in ATM machines; (d) phishing on the internet by writing emails to millions of unsuspecting masses by pretending to be a financial institution &/or credit card agency seeking to verify key information on one's bank account or credit card; and/or (e) changing another person's address for their bank statements &/or credit card statements.
Some of the relief available include contacting the credit bureaus to review your current credit report and disputing any unauthorized transactions &/or fraudulent entries, placing a "fraud alert" on your file; filing reports with the police or sheriff, notifying creditors, and closing any accounts that you suspect have been compromised.
If you have been a victim of any white collar crime, call Spital and Associates to discuss the above issues. On the other hand, if you or a friend is being investigated, has been arrested or charged with a white collar crime, you should contact your San Diego While Collar Crime Defense Attorneys now. We are available 24/7.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act
The Federal Government prosecutes organized crime under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute (18 U.S.C. §1961-58(1994). These criminal cases call for lengthy prison sentences and huge fines. RICO violations can emanate from the following activities:
- Threats and conspiracies involving murder, kidnapping, gambling, arson, robbery, bribery, extortion
- Felonious manufacture, import, export, or sale of obscene matter or controlled substances
- Trafficking in stolen property, contraband or cigarettes
- Embezzlement, wire or securities fraud
- Falsifying ID documents
- Counterfeiting materials or currency
- Interference with commerce
- Racketeering
- Wagering
- Obstruction of justice
DEFENSES - MITIGATION
White collar crimes follow the general principles of criminal liability in that each crime requires a bad act, a criminal intent, and causation. Moreover, the prosecution must present evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict the accused. The defenses to white collar crime generally are the same ones applicable to all crimes and include the defense of incapacity, insanity defense, intoxication defense, and duress as a defense . Besides a reduction in the sentence, we also look for ways to surpress the evidence and scrutinize the pre-arrest activity or enforcement procedures of the police and sheriff.
Of particular note for white collar crime prosecutions is the defense of entrapment. Entrapment occurs when the government has enticed a person to commit a crime he or she otherwise would not have committed. The majority of courts look at the defense of entrapment through the eyes of the individual defendant, and the focus becomes the propensity of that defendant to commit the crime when determining whether he or she may succeed using the defense of entrapment. An additional argument focuses on the government's conduct from the perspective of whether it is outrageous in terms of convincing a person to commit a crime.
If you or a friend or relative are investigated or arrested for any white collar crime, contact the personal and experienced San Diego Fraud Defense Attorneys and the tough, smart and aggressive White Collar Crime Defense Lawyers in San Diego at Sam Spital and Associates by dialing 619-583-0350 or send an e-mail now so that we can help.
Samuel Spital & Associates
8880 Rio San Diego Drive
Suite 800
San Diego, Ca. 92108-1642
Telephone: 619-583-0350
E-mail
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