Austin RICO Defense Attorney

Former Prosecutors & a Judge Defending Federal & Texas Racketeering Charges

We defend people facing racketeering allegations under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act and the Texas Engaging in Organized Criminal Activity statute. These laws aren’t interchangeable. Each requires prosecutors to prove different elements, and we build the defense around the specific statute, alleged enterprise, underlying offenses, and our client’s actual role.

Led by Rick Cofer and Jeffrey Connelly, both former felony prosecutors and judges appointed to offices by Presidents, Governors, and Mayors, our team brings more than 100 years of combined experience and has tried over 300 jury trials throughout Texas.

Federal RICO Charges Under 18 U.S.C. § 1962

Federal RICO prohibits several forms of conduct involving a criminal enterprise: investing racketeering proceeds, acquiring control of an enterprise, conducting its affairs through racketeering activity, and conspiring to do any of the above. An enterprise may be a legal entity or a group associated for a common purpose.

A predicate offense is an underlying crime prosecutors use to establish racketeering activity. A pattern requires at least two qualifying acts, with the most recent occurring within 10 years of a prior act. Two allegations alone aren’t enough: prosecutors must also establish a relationship and continuity between the acts.

A conviction carries up to 20 years in prison per count, or a life sentence when the underlying racketeering activity itself allows for one. The statute also permits criminal forfeiture of interests, proceeds, and property connected to the offense.

A federal RICO case filed in Austin proceeds through the Austin Division of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.

Texas Engaging in Organized Criminal Activity Under Penal Code § 71.02

Texas prosecutes racketeering-type conduct as engaging in organized criminal activity. It applies when a person intends to establish, maintain, or participate in a combination, criminal street gang, or foreign terrorist organization and commits or conspires to commit an enumerated offense.

A combination means three or more people collaborating in criminal activity. Participants don’t have to know one another’s identities, and membership can change over time. The enumerated underlying offenses include certain forms of theft, fraud, bribery, controlled substance activity, money laundering, robbery, kidnapping, and other crimes identified in the statute.

Punishment is set one category above the most serious underlying offense. A Class A misdemeanor, for example, is elevated to a state jail felony. The state’s case also doesn’t fail simply because another alleged participant wasn’t charged, received immunity, or was acquitted.

How We Defend Racketeering & RICO Allegations

No single defense fits every multi-defendant or enterprise case. We examine how investigators obtained their evidence, whether the alleged group satisfies the governing legal definition, and whether the prosecution can actually connect our client to the charged conduct.

Depending on the allegations, our defense analysis may include:

• Challenging the enterprise or combination: The evidence may not establish the structure, shared purpose, continuity, or collaboration required by federal or Texas law.
• Disputing the alleged pattern: The predicate acts may be unrelated, unsupported, too isolated, or legally insufficient to form a pattern of racketeering activity.
• Separating individual conduct: Association with another defendant doesn’t by itself prove participation in a criminal enterprise or agreement to join a conspiracy.
• Testing the government’s evidence: Financial records, searches, wiretaps, witness accounts, and electronic communications must each be examined for legal and factual weaknesses.

Early representation matters. When a target letter, search warrant, interview request, or grand jury subpoena arrives, charges may not yet be filed, and there’s still room to engage with prosecutors while their theory is being assembled. Our background as former prosecutors and judges informs how we read the government’s strategy, and every defense we build is tailored to our client’s circumstances and long-term goals.