Legal Definitions - racketeer

A racketeer is an individual who systematically engages in illegal business activities, often involving coercion, intimidation, fraud, or violence, to generate illicit profits. These activities are typically part of an organized scheme or pattern rather than isolated incidents, and they exploit legitimate systems or create entirely illicit ones for financial gain.

Here are some examples illustrating the term:

• Example 1: The "Protection" Racket

  A group of individuals approaches small business owners in a neighborhood, demanding a weekly "fee" to ensure their shops are not vandalized or burglarized. If a business owner refuses to pay, their windows are mysteriously broken, or their inventory is stolen. The group then returns to offer "protection" again.

  This group consists of racketeers because they are systematically engaging in an illegal business (extortion) by using threats and intimidation to force business owners to pay for "protection" that they don't need, thereby generating illicit profits through a pattern of coercive behavior.

• Example 2: The Loan Shark

  An individual operates an underground lending operation, offering quick cash loans to people in desperate financial situations. The interest rates are astronomically high, far exceeding legal limits, and the lender employs enforcers to threaten borrowers with physical harm or property damage if they fail to make payments on time.

  This individual is a racketeer because they are running an illegal financial scheme (usury and extortion) as a business. They use coercion and threats of violence to ensure repayment and profit from the illegal loans, demonstrating a clear pattern of illicit activity for financial gain.

• Example 3: The Corrupt Union Official

  A high-ranking official within a construction workers' union uses their influence to demand kickbacks from contractors who want to secure lucrative building projects. The official threatens to orchestrate strikes or delay necessary permits if the contractors do not pay a percentage of their earnings, effectively extorting money under the guise of union power.

  Here, the union official is a racketeer. They are leveraging their position within a legitimate organization to systematically engage in an illegal scheme (extortion and bribery) for personal profit. Their actions involve coercion and threats to manipulate business operations and unlawfully enrich themselves, fitting the definition of engaging in racketeering.