Aiding and Abetting/Accessory
A criminal charge of aiding and abetting or accessory can usually be brought against anyone who helps in the commission of a crime, though legal distinctions vary by state. A person charged with aiding and abetting or accessory is usually not present when the crime itself is committed, but he or she has knowledge of the crime before or after the fact, and may assist in its commission through advice, actions, or financial support. Depending on the level of involvement, the offender's participation in the crime may rise to the level of conspiracy.

Arson
The felony crime of intentionally burning a house or other building. The perpetrators range from mentally ill pyromaniacs to store owners hoping to get insurance proceeds. Historically, arson meant just the burning of a house, but now covers any structure. A death resulting from arson is murder.

Assault
The threat or attempt to strike another, whether successful or not, provided the target is aware of the danger. The assaulter must be reasonably capable of carrying through the attack. In some states if the assault is with a deadly weapon (such as sniping with a rifle), the intended victim does not need to know of the peril. Other state laws distinguish between different degrees (first or second) of assault depending on whether there is actual hitting, injury or just a threat.

Battery
The actual intentional striking of someone, with intent to harm, or in a "rude and insolent manner" even if the injury is slight. Negligent or careless unintentional contact is not battery no matter how great the harm. Battery is a crime and also the basis for a lawsuit as a civil wrong if there is damage.

Bribery
The crime of giving or taking money or some other valuable item in order to influence a public official (any governmental employee) in the performance of his/her duties. Bribery includes paying to get government contracts (cutting in the roads commissioner for a secret percentage of the profit), giving a bottle of liquor to a building inspector to ignore a violation or grant a permit, or selling stock to a Congressman at a cut-rate price. Example: Governor (later Vice President) Spiro T. Agnew received five cents from the concessionaire for each pack of cigarettes sold in the Maryland capitol building. The definition has been expanded to include bribes given to corporate officials to obtain contracts or other advantages which are against company policy.

Burglary
The crime of breaking and entering into a structure for the purpose of committing a crime. No great force is needed (pushing open a door or slipping through an open window is sufficient) if the entry is unauthorized. Contrary to common belief, a burglary is not necessarily for theft. It can apply to any crime, such as assault or sexual harassment, whether the intended criminal act is committed or not. Originally under English common law burglary was limited to entry in residences at night, but it has been expanded to all criminal entries into any building, or even into a vehicle.

Child Abuse
The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act defines child abuse and neglect as: "at a minimum, any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm."

For CAPTA, the term child is someone who has not reached the age of 18; or (except in the case of sexual abuse) the age specified by the child protection law of the State in which the child resides;

CAPTA defines the term "sexual abuse" as: "the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct; or the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children." 

Computer Crime
Computer crime laws in many states prohibit a person from performing certain acts without authorization, including (1) accessing a computer, system, or network; (2) modifying, damaging, using, disclosing, copying, or taking programs or data; (3) introducing a virus or other contaminant into a computer system; (4) using a computer in a scheme to defraud; (5) interfering with someone else’s computer access or use; (6) using encryption in aid of a crime; (7) falsifying e-mail source information; and (8) stealing an information service from a provider.

Counterfeit
(1) Describing a document, particularly money, which is forged or created to look real and intended to pass for real; (2)to criminally forge or print a false copy of money, bonds, or other valuable documents, intending to profit from the falsity; shorthand for phony money passed for real.

Conspiracy
When people work together by agreement to commit an illegal act. A conspiracy may exist when the parties use legal means to accomplish an illegal result, or to use illegal means to achieve something that in itself is lawful. To prove a conspiracy those involved must have agreed to the plan before all the actions have been taken, or it is just a series of independent illegal acts. A conspiracy can be criminal for planning and carrying out illegal activities, or give rise to a civil lawsuit for damages by someone injured by the conspiracy. Thus, a scheme by a group of salesmen to sell used automobiles as new, could be prosecuted as a crime of fraud and conspiracy, and also allow a purchaser of an auto to sue for damages for the fraud and conspiracy.

Credit Card Fraud
Credit card fraud often, but not always, involves the bank directly. The most common kind of credit card fraud is the illegal counterfeiting of credit cards. Sometimes defendants use desktop computer systems to produce realistic-looking credit cards with holograms and functioning magnetic strips. Lost or stolen credit cards constitute another common fraudulent use and bring many defendants before the law.  Some people obtain credit cards fraudulently through the mail, either by illegally obtaining confidential information gleaned from other peoples' mailboxes, or recovering cards or credit card applications from the trash.  The Internet has also become a part of credit card fraud, as lists of stolen credit card numbers are posted or sold in newsgroups and are sometimes used to purchase goods online.

Disorderly Conduct
(1) actions that disturb others; (2) minor criminal offenses, such as public drunkenness, loitering, disturbing the peace, and loud threats or parties.

Domestic Violence
The continuing crime and problem of the physical beating of a wife, girlfriend or children, usually by the woman's male partner (although it can also be female violence against a male). It is now recognized as an antisocial mental illness. Sometimes a woman's dependence, low self-esteem and fear of leaving cause her to endure this conduct or fail to protect a child. Prosecutors and police often face the problem that a battered woman will not press charges or testify due to fear, intimidation and misplaced "love." Increasingly domestic violence is attracting the sympathetic attention of law enforcement, the courts and community services, including shelters and protection for those in danger.

Drug Cultivation and Manufacturing
Drug cultivation and manufacturing laws make it a crime 1) to grow, produce, and possess certain plants and other naturally occurring elements used in the production of unlawful controlled substances, such as cannabis seeds and marijuana plants; or 2) to produce illegal controlled substances like cocaine, methamphetamine, LSD, and Ecstasy (MDMA), which require use of certain chemicals and laboratory equipment in their production. Federal and state drug cultivation laws vary according to drug type and the amount produced.

Drug Distribution/Trafficking
Drug distribution/trafficking laws penalize the selling, transportation, and illegal import into the United States of unlawful controlled substances such as marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD, "club drugs," and heroin. Federal and state drug distribution/trafficking laws and punishments vary according to drug type, amount, geographic area of distribution, and whether minors were sold to or targeted. Drug distribution/trafficking laws can implicate a single individual or a broad ring of people involved in organized illegal drug activity.

Drug Possession
Federal and state drug possession laws make it a crime to willfully possess illegal controlled substances such as marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD, "club drugs," and heroin. These laws also criminalize the possession of "precursor" chemicals used in drug cultivation and manufacturing, as well as certain accessories related to drug use. Drug possession laws vary according to drug type, amount, and geographic area of the offense. Possession of small quantities may be deemed "simple" possession, while possession of large amounts may result in a charge of presumed "possession with intent to distribute."

Driving Under the Influence (DUI)/Driving While Intoxicated (DWI)
Commonly called "drunk driving," it refers to operating a motor vehicle while one's blood alcohol content is above the legal limit set by statute, which supposedly is the level at which a person cannot drive safely. State statutes vary as to what that level is, but it ranges from .08 to .10 for adults, which means a 8/100ths to one-tenth of one percent by weight of alcohol to the weight of blood. This is translated into grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood in tests of blood or urine sample, or grams of alcohol per 210 liters of air in a "breathalizer" test. A combination of the use of alchol and narcotics can also be "under the influence" based on erratic driving. Driving on private property such as a parking lot is no defense, but sitting in a non-moving vehicle without the ignition on probably is (sometimes resulting in a charge of "drunk in and about a vehicle"). This is a misdemeanor and is variously referred to as DUI, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, or a "deuce".

Embezzlement
The crime of stealing the funds or property of an employer, company or government or misappropriating money or assets held in trust.

Extortion
Obtaining money or property by threat to a victim's property or loved ones, intimidation, or false claim of a right (such as pretending to be an IRS agent). It is a felony in all states, except that a direct threat to harm the victim is usually treated as the crime of robbery. Blackmail is a form of extortion in which the threat is to expose embarrassing, damaging information to family, friends or the public.

Forgery
(1) The crime of creating a false document, altering a document, or writing a false signature for the illegal benefit of the person making the forgery. This includes improperly filling in a blank document, like an automobile purchase contract, over a buyer's signature, with the terms different from those agreed. It does not include such innocent representation as a staff member autographing photos of politicians or movie stars. While similar to forgery, counterfeiting refers to the creation of phony money, stock certificates or bonds which are negotiable for cash; (2) a document or signature falsely created or altered.

Homicide
The killing of a human being due to the act or omission of another. Included among homicides are murder and manslaughter, but not all homicides are a crime, particularly when there is a lack of criminal intent. Non-criminal homicides include killing in self-defense, a misadventure like a hunting accident or automobile wreck without a violation of law like reckless driving, or legal (government) execution. Suicide is a homicide, but in most cases there is no one to prosecute if the suicide is successful. Assisting or attempting suicide can be a crime.

Identity Theft
Identity Theft primarily involves either "true name" or "account takeover" fraud. With "true name" someone uses a consumer's personal information to open new accounts in his or her name. With "account takeover" someone gains access to a person's existing account(s) and makes fraudulent charges. Another form of identity theft occurs when a criminal provides a victim's personal information to law enforcement when the criminal gets arrested. The victim may then have a criminal record or outstanding warrants attached to their name without even realizing it.

Indecent Exposure
The crime of displaying one's genitalia to one or more other people in a public place, usually with the apparent intent to shock the unsuspecting viewer and give the exposer a sexual charge.

Insurance Fraud
Insurance Fraud includes everything from padding estimates, to under-reporting how many employees work for a business.

Insurance fraud cases involve criminal acts surrounding automobile property and personal injury, workers' compensation, health insurance and residential and commercial property claims. Some examples of the types of insurance fraud include:
                     -Staged Automobile Accidents
                     -Fraudulent Healthcare Billings
                     -False and/or Inflated Property Loss Claims
                    - Phony Workers' Compensation Claims
                     -Fraudulent Denial of Workers' Compensation Benefits  
                     -Arson for Profit
                     -Fake Life Insurance Claims
                     -Workers' Compensation Premium Fraud by Employers

Home repair fraud is related to disaster fraud. Home improvement fraud can target roofing, furnace, driveway repairs, etc. A common scheme is for a "so called" contractor to convince a homeowner that a deposit must be made before their repair work can begin. When the deposit is made the homeowner never sees or hears from the con artist again.

Internet Fraud
Internet fraud generally refers to any type of fraudulent use of a computer and the Internet, including the use of chat rooms, email, message boards, discussion groups and web sites, to conduct fraudulent transactions, transmit the proceeds of fraud to financial institutions, or to steal, destroy or otherwise render unusable (the proliferation of viruses for example) computer data vital to the operation of a business.

Online auction and retail schemes, business opportunity/"work-at-home" schemes, investment schemes and market manipulation schemes are just a few of the current known cybercrime abuses. Auction and retail schemes sometimes offer luxury merchandise, from expensive watches to high-end computers to collectible items. These schemes encourage people to send money, but either the goods are never delivered or the item is far less valuable that what the purchaser thought he was buying. Business opportunity and "work-at-home" schemes promise that individuals will earn thousands of dollars but require upfront fees ranging from $35 to hundreds of dollars. Often people never receive anything in return, or find that the materials are not what the seller warranted.

Kidnapping
The taking of a person against his/her will (or from the control of a parent or guardian) from one place to another under circumstances in which the person so taken does not have freedom of movement, will, or decision through violence, force, threat or intimidation. Although it is not necessary that the purpose be criminal (since all kidnapping is a criminal felony) the capture usually involves some related criminal act such as holding the person for ransom, sexual and/or sadistic abuse, or rape. It includes taking due to irresistible impulse and a parent taking and hiding a child in violation of court order. An included crime is false imprisonment. Any harm to the victim coupled with kidnapping can raise the degree of felony for the injury and can result in a capital (death penalty) offense in some states, even though the victim survives. Originally it meant the stealing of children, since "kid" is child in Scandinavian languages, but now applies to adults as well.  

Larceny
The crime of taking the goods of another person without permission (usually secretly), with the intent of keeping them. It is one form of theft. Some states differentiate between grand larceny and petty larceny based on the value of the stolen goods. Grand larceny is a felony with a state prison sentence as a punishment and petty larceny is usually limited to county jail time.

Manslaughter
The unlawful killing of another person without premeditation or so-called "malice aforethought" (an evil intent prior to the killing). It is distinguished from murder (which brings greater penalties) by lack of any prior intention to kill anyone or create a deadly situation. There are two levels of manslaughter: voluntary and involuntary. Voluntary manslaughter includes killing in heat of passion or while committing a felony. Involuntary manslaughter occurs when a death is caused by a violation of a non-felony, such as reckless driving (called "vehicular manslaughter").

Money Laundering
Money laundering is the investment or transfer of money from racketeering, drug transactions or other embezzlement schemes so that it appears that its original source either cannot be traced, or appears to be legitimate.

First Degree Murder
Although it varies from state to state, it is generally a killing which is deliberate and premeditated (planned, after lying in wait, by poison or as part of a scheme), in conjunction with felonies such as rape, burglary, arson, or involving multiple deaths, the killing of certain types of people (such as a child, a police officer, a prison guard, a fellow prisoner), or certain weapons, particularly a gun. The specific criteria for first degree murder, are established by statute in each state and by the U.S. Code in federal prosecutions. It is distinguished from second degree murder in which premeditation is usually absent, and from manslaughter, which lacks premeditation and suggests that at most there was intent to harm rather than to kill.

Second Degree Murder
A non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility. Second degree murder is different from first degree murder, which is a premeditated, intentional killing or results from a vicious crime such as arson, rape or armed robbery. Exact distinctions on degree vary by state.

Perjury
The crime of intentionally lying after being duly sworn (to tell the truth) by a notary public, court clerk or other official. This false statement may be made in testimony in court, administrative hearings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, as well as by signing or acknowledging a written legal document (such as affidavit, declaration under penalty of perjury, deed, license application, tax return) known to contain false information. Although it is a crime, prosecutions for perjury are rare, because a defendant will argue he/she merely made a mistake or misunderstood.

Prostitution
The profession of performing sexual acts for money. Prostitution is a crime throughout the United States, except for a few counties in the state of Nevada, where it is allowed in licensed houses of prostitution. Soliciting acts of prostitution is also a crime, called pandering or simply, soliciting. Pandering on behalf of a prostitute is called pimping.

Pyramid Schemes
Pyramid Schemes may involve a structure that is laid out like a pyramid, with one person at the top, two persons on the next level, four on the next and eight on the next. The structure may also be circular with one person at the center, two on the next, four on the next and eight persons on the outer circle. The circular structure is merely a view of a pyramid looking from the top down. Pyramid selling is illegal because it runs on the basis that participants in the pyramid are required to contribute something of value, usually money, and then by reason of the contributions of other participants they become entitled to something of greater value, usually a larger sum of money. In order for any participant to become entitled to more than was contributed, a larger number of new participants is required. If every person who was approached to participate did, eventually the pyramid would fail. Earlier participants in a pyramid selling scheme are more likely to benefit than later participants. The effect is that while a few benefit the majority do not.

Racketeering
The federal crime of conspiring to organize to commit crimes, particularly as a regular business ("organized crime" or "the Mafia").

Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization (RICO) Statue
A federal law which makes it a crime for organized criminal conspiracies to operate legitimate businesses.

Rape
The crime of sexual intercourse (with actual penetration of a woman's vagina with the man's penis) without consent and accomplished through force, threat of violence or intimidation (such as a threat to harm a woman's child, husband or boyfriend). What constitutes lack of consent usually includes saying "no" or being too drunk or drug-influenced for the woman to be able to either resist or consent, but a recent Pennsylvania case ruled that a woman must do more than say "no" on the bizarre theory that "no" does not always mean "don't," but a flirtatious come-on. "Date rape" involves rape by an acquaintance who refuses to stop when told to. Defense attorneys often argue that there had to be physical resistance, but the modern view is that fear of harm and the relative strengths of the man and the woman are obvious deterrents to a woman fighting back. Any sexual intercourse with a child is rape and in most states sexual relations even with consent involving a girl 14 to 18 (with some variation on ages in a few states) is "statutory rape," on the basis that the female is unable to give consent. 2) to have sexual intercourse with a female without her consent through force, violence, threat or intimidation, or with a girl under age. Technically, a woman can be charged with rape by assisting a man in the rape of another woman. Dissatisfied with the typical prosecution of rape cases (in which the defense humiliates the accuser, and prosecutors are unable or unwilling to protect the woman from such tactics), women have been suing for civil damages for the physical and emotional damage caused by the rape, although too often the perpetrator has no funds. Protection services for rape victims have been developed by both public and private agencies. On the other side of the coin, there is the concern of law enforcement and prosecutors that women whose advances have been rejected by a man, or who have been caught in the act of consensual sexual intercourse may falsely cry "rape."

Robbery
(1) the direct taking of property (including money) from a person (victim) through force, threat or intimidation. Robbery is a felony (crime punishable by a term in state or federal prison). "Armed robbery" involves the use of a gun or other weapon which can do bodily harm, such as a knife or club, and under most state laws carries a stiffer penalty (longer possible term) than robbery by merely taking; (2) a term improperly used to describe thefts, including burglary (breaking and entering) and shoplifting (secret theft from the stock of a store), expressed: "We've been robbed."

Securities / Investment Fraud
Securities/investment fraud may include the following types of infractions:

(1)Unsuitability - The broker must have reasonable grounds for believing each recommendation to a customer is suitable on the basis of the customer's other securities holdings, and financial situation, among other factors.
(2)Churning - (excessive trading) - If a broker is buying and selling securities in your account to generate commissions that seem excessive, and the broker pressures you should take quick profits, there is a strong possibility that your account is being churned.
(3)Unauthorized Trades - Brokers must have expressed and detailed permission of the customer unless the broker and the broker's firm have been granted written discretionary authority by the customer.
(4) Failure to execute order (including online trading errors) - Brokers can't refuse your order and are responsible for executing orders in a timely fashion.
(5)High-Pressure Selling/Misinformation - Some brokers use illegal techniques to sell their "house stocks."
(6)Over Concentration - Brokers must assure that the portfolios of their clients are balanced with a diversity of investments.
(7)Illegal Accounts - A broker cannot place a client's money into his own personal account or set up false accounts.

Securities fraud can be described as deceptive practices in the commodity and stock markets. The Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 prohibit the use of manipulative or deceptive devices, making false statements in order to increase market share, conspiracy and other acts of unfair market practices.

Like many other types of financial fraud, the web of offenders in securities fraud can include stockbrokers, promoters, traders, accountants, and lawyers. Professionals like these working together can defraud stockholders out of billions of dollars. Although the idea of boiler room schemes pushing worthless penny stocks upon unsuspecting victims comprises part of the problem, the SEC and federal courts have imposed both civil and criminal sanctions upon such diverse groups ranging from organized crime rings to high school students.

The four most prevalent types of securities crime include "churning", insider trading fraud, outsider training, and "pump and dump" fraud. Churning refers to the buying and selling of stock in order to generate commissions for the stockbroker at the expense of client's profits.  Insider trading refers to the misappropriation of nonpublic information. While the original statutes made it illegal for employees to directly benefit from market-sensitive information, the definition of insider trading has been expanded to disallow sharing privileged information to a third party who might buy shares in the company.

Outsider trading evolved from insider trading laws. The United States Supreme Court first recognized a form of outsider trading in the 1997 case United States v. O'Hara. The court in that case applied what they called the "misappropriation theory." The misappropriation theory, "subjects individuals who trade on material, non-public information to prosecution, regardless of whether they worked for the company whose stock was being traded or otherwise owed the corporation's shareholders a fiduciary duty.  "While originally involving a strict interpretation of the Securities Exchange Act, Decisions from cases before O'Hara in the early eighties limited the criminal liability of outside traders to only those instances in which the outsider should have known that the information resulted from a breach in the first place.

One of the most common Internet scams is in fact, one of the oldest investment schemes of all time: the "pump-and dump" scam. Historically pump-and-dump schemes are run out of makeshift offices staffed with fast talking telemarketers that convince innocent investors to buy debatable stock. The high pressure sales tactics generate enough demand to push up the share price of stock. This phase of the scheme is known as, the "pump". The "dump" occurs when the price of the stock reaches a specific objective and the operation that was originally encouraging investors to buy, sells its shares for a significant profit. The sell-off will also lower demand and consequently the share price, leaving unsuspecting investors with a loss.

Using online investment newsletters positioned as objective to the trade, and which promote the purchase of specific securities may constitute another form of investment fraud.

Sexual Assault
Sexual contact usu. that is forced upon a person without consent or inflicted upon a person who is incapable of giving consent (as because of age or physical or mental incapacity) or who places the assailant (as a doctor) in a position of trust
Note: Sexual assault in its most serious forms (often classified as first degree sexual assault) involves nonconsensual sexual penetration. In its less serious forms it may be the equivalent of statutory rape.

Sexual Harassment
Unwanted sexual approaches (including touching, feeling, groping) and/or repeated unpleasant, degrading and/or sexist remarks directed toward an employee with the implied suggestion that the target's employment status, promotion or favorable treatment depend upon a positive response and/or "cooperation." Sexual harassment is a private nuisance, unfair labor practice or, in some states, a civil wrong (tort) which may be the basis for a lawsuit against the individual who made the advances and against the employer who did not take steps to halt the harassment. A legal secretary recently won an award of more than $3 million against a prominent law firm in California for not controlling a partner notorious for his sexual harassment of female employees.

Stalking
Stalking laws in most states pertain to a relatively new crime involving a clear pattern of conduct in which the offender follows, harasses, or threatens another person, putting that person in fear for his or her safety. An individual may be charged with stalking regardless of any pre-existing relationship with the victim. Stalking victims can range from celebrities to former spouses who have obtained a protective order against their ex.

Tax Evasion
Intentional and fraudulent attempt to escape payment of taxes in whole or in part. If proved to be intentional and not just an error or difference of opinion, tax evasion can be a chargeable federal crime. Evasion is distinguished from attempts to use interpretation of tax laws and/or imaginative accounting to reduce the amount of payable tax.

Tax Evasion / Tax Fraud
Many federal white-collar prosecutions are for tax crimes, such as tax evasion, failure to file income tax returns, or tax fraud. Because of the war on drugs, and the war on terrorism, criminal investigations into personal and business tax filings have become more intense. As defense attorney and tax specialist Kathryn Keneally writes in a recent issue of The Champion, "IRS Criminal Investigation is uniquely entrusted with the enforcement of criminal tax statutes." Adds Keneally, "The IRS looks to criminal enforcement not only to punish the small number whose wrongful acts are detected and can be proven, but also to deter the majority of taxpayers from attempting to cheat on their taxes.

There are some special considerations to keep in mind if you are under investigation for violations of the Internal Revenue Code, as Kathryn Keneally explains:

In a bank fraud case, for example, the federal investigative agency is typically the FBI. The FBI usually works directly with the local United States Attorney's office. When the FBI has completed its investigation, it forwards its case to the local U.S. Attorney's office, and the local office determines whether to prosecute or not.

In tax crime cases, the procedure is significantly different. The typical criminal tax case is investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation section. IRSCI investigators are federal agents trained in law enforcement techniques and tactics; they are also trained accountants, and many have achieved their CPA. There are CID offices throughout the country.

When an IRSCI agent completes an investigation and recommends that an individual be prosecuted, there are at least two stages of review by Internal Revenue Service attorneys prior to the approval of prosecution. Once the Internal Revenue Service approves prosecution at its highest level, the case is forwarded to the United States Department of Justice Tax Division in Washington, DC, where federal prosecutors specializing in criminal tax violations review the case and decide whether or not to authorize prosecution. If the Department of Justice Tax Division in Washington approves prosecution, the case is sent to the local US Attorney's office with the direction that the individual or individuals named be indicted and prosecuted for the offenses alleged.

In tax crime cases, the multi-tiered approval process can work to your advantage. The process gives you a number of different opportunities to derail a federal criminal case before it ever gets to grand jury. At each of the IRS approval levels and at the Department of Justice Tax Division level, your lawyer will have the opportunity to schedule a conference where he or she can sit down with government attorneys and attempt to convince them to decline prosecution of the case. If the government has a strong case against you, it is unlikely that he or she will be successful in convincing either the IRS or the Department of Justice Tax Division to refrain from prosecuting.

However, if there are misunderstandings that can be explained away and the government can be convinced that there was no criminal conduct, you have the opportunity to convince the government to decline prosecution prior to grand jury. It is always less stressful to have your attorney address matters in meetings with government attorneys than to present your side of the story to a jury at a federal criminal trial.

Also, in tax crime cases it is important to have an attorney who is not only well experienced in federal criminal matters, but who also has had significant experience in federal criminal tax cases. If you are comfortable with a lawyer who is experienced in federal criminal defense but lacks tax experience, consider adding a former IRSCI agent to your defense team. However you accomplish your objective, you will want both federal criminal defense and tax crime experience on your side.

Telemarketing Fraud
Telemarketing Fraud is a term that refers generally to any scheme to "deprive victims dishonestly of money or property or to misrepresent the values of goods or services."

Traditionally fraudulent telemarketers have operated out of boiler rooms. "Boiler room" operations involve rented offices with banks of telephones operated by high-pressure salespersons who peddle investment offers, charity solicitations, and telephone billing scams to name a few. Some boiler rooms employ a multi-tier approach with customers.

After a less experienced caller makes an initial contact, more seasoned telemarketers handle sales, follow-ups, verifications, and reloads. All fraudulent operators, however, are persuasive and persistent in order to swindle as many people as possible.

Boiler rooms represent the ideal office setup for fraudulent telemarketers. Typically, such offices consist of an open space with numerous phone lines and few furnishings. Once fraudulent telemarketers suspect that they are under investigation, or that their frauds are about to be detected, they can quickly disband their operation and relocate.

The California Department of Corporations has reported that 100 new boiler rooms have opened in the last year in Los Angeles alone. Other areas experiencing growth of boiler room operations include Florida, Canada, and increasingly, the Caribbean.

As law enforcement and regulatory authorities have become more vigorous in prosecuting fraudulent telemarketing, telemarketers have increasingly engaged in what's known as "rip-and-tear." Rip-and-tear telemarketers will utilize pay telephones, mobile phones, cloned phones, and long distance cards to carry out their schemes. Fraudulent telemarketers try to make it appear that their service or charitable cause is worth the money that they are asking the consumer to send.

Because these telemarketers' objective is to maximize their profits, fraudulent telemarketers will typically adopt one or both of two approaches. The first is to fail to give the consumer anything of value in return for their money. The second is to provide items far below what the consumer had expected the value to be.

According to the National Fraud Information Center, the top telemarketing "scams" for 2000 were:
   -Prizes/Sweepstakes
   -Magazine sales
   -Credit Card Sales
   -Work-at-Home
   -Advance Fee Loans
   -Telephone Slamming
   -Credit Card Loss Protection
   -Buyers Clubs
   -Telephone Cramming
   -Travel/Vacations

These top ten frauds of 2000 make up 80 percent of all telemarketing complaints received by the National Fraud Information Center.

As an example of law enforcement against alleged telemarketing fraud, during "Operation Disconnect" a few years ago, FBI undercover agents pretended to sell a special machine that would allow fraudulent telemarketers to dial as many as 12,000 calls per hour. Such a machine would have increased the ability of telemarketing schemes to contact large numbers of prospective victims throughout the United States. Undercover agents obtained many damaging and revealing admissions from the telemarketers about the fraudulent and criminal nature of their business activities.

As a result of Operation Disconnect, several hundred fraudulent telemarketers were successfully prosecuted, in some cases receiving prison sentences as high as ten years.

Theft
The generic term for all crimes in which a person intentionally and fraudulently takes personal property of another without permission or consent and with the intent to convert it to the taker's use (including potential sale). In many states, if the value of the property taken is low (for example, less than $500) the crime is "petty theft," but it is "grand theft" for larger amounts, designated misdemeanor or felony, respectively. Theft is synonymous with "larceny." Although robbery (taking by force), burglary (taken by entering unlawfully) and embezzlement (stealing from an employer) are all commonly thought of as theft, they are distinguished by the means and methods used and are separately designated as those types of crimes in criminal charges and statutory punishments.

Wire Fraud
Wire fraud makes it a Federal crime or offense for anyone to use interstate wire communications facilities in carrying out a scheme to defraud. A person can be found guilty of that offense only if all of the following facts are proved beyond a reasonable doubt:
   -First: That the person knowingly and willfully devised a scheme to defraud, or for obtaining money or property by means of false pretenses, representations or promises; and
   -Second: That the person knowingly transmitted or caused to be transmitted by wire in interstate commerce some sound for the purpose of executing the scheme to defraud.
It is not necessary that the Government prove all of the details concerning the precise nature and purpose of the scheme; or that the material transmitted by wire was itself false or fraudulent; or that the alleged scheme actually succeeded in defrauding anyone; or that the use of interstate wire communications facilities was intended as the specific or exclusive means of accomplishing the alleged fraud.

What must be proved is that the person knowingly and willfully devised or intended to devise a scheme to defraud; and that the use of the interstate wire communications facilities was closely related to the scheme because the person either wired something or caused it to be wired in interstate commerce in an attempt to execute or carry out the scheme. To "cause" interstate wire facilities to be used is to do an act with knowledge that the use of the wires will follow in the ordinary course of business or where such use can reasonably be foreseen. Each separate use of the interstate wire facilities in furtherance of a scheme to defraud constitutes a separate offense.