Jury finds 5 guilty in RICO trial
WICHITA - After 11 days of deliberation, a federal jury on April 15th found five men guilty of conspiring to operate organized crime through the Crips street gang in Wichita, Kansas, but jurors could not agree whether the defendants had participated in a pattern of racketeering.
A sixth defendant, whose lawyer said he had the least association with the group, was found not guilty of murder, racketeering and conspiracy.
The case posed the question of whether the street gang rose to the level of organized crime under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly known as RICO.
While the jury found that all the men committed criminal acts, jurors either acquitted or were unable to reach a verdict on charges that the alleged Crips members operated a criminal organization that met RICO standards.
However, five of the defendants were found guilty on RICO charges of conspiracy to engage in racketeering.
