The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization.
The Genovese crime family is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American Mafia. They have generally maintained a varying degree of influence over many of the smaller mob families outside New York,including ties with the Philadelphia,Patriarca,and Buffalo crime families.
Lynne Marsha Abraham is an American attorney who served as the district attorney of the City of Philadelphia from May 1991 to January 2010. She was the first woman to serve as Philadelphia's district attorney. Abraham won election to that position four times.
The Alaska political corruption probe refers to a 2003 to 2010 widespread investigation by the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice,the Federal Bureau of Investigation,and the Internal Revenue Service into political corruption of nine then-current or former Alaskan state lawmakers,as well as Republican US Representative Don Young and then-US Senator,Republican Ted Stevens. Sometimes referred to as "The Corrupt Bastards Club" or the "Operation Polar Pen",the investigation focused on the oil industry,fisheries and for-profit prison industries.
Steven L. "Stevie" Crea is an American mobster and former underboss of the Lucchese crime family. In August 2020,he was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder and racketeering.
Bruce Lee Castor Jr. is an American lawyer and retired Republican politician from Montgomery County,Pennsylvania. He was appointed as the first Solicitor General of Pennsylvania in March 2016,and also first deputy attorney general the following July. Castor became acting attorney general less than a month later. He led for the defense of the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump along with American lawyer David Schoen.
Joseph Salvatore "Skinny Joey" Merlino is an Italian-American mobster and reputed boss of the Philadelphia crime family. He rose to power in the mid-nineties after he allegedly fought a war for control of the criminal organization. He has led the crime family in gambling,loan sharking,drug trafficking,and extortion. In comparison to other traditional mob bosses who shunned the limelight,Merlino has interacted regularly with the media and the public,often openly providing charity and hosting events to benefit indigent people in Philadelphia,drawing comparisons to the similarly outgoing,conspicuous,and ostensibly charitable late New York crime boss John Gotti. He is the son of deceased Philadelphia crime family underboss Chuckie Merlino.
Nicodemo Salvatore "Nicky" Scarfo Jr.,sometimes known by the nickname's "Junior","Nick Promo",and "Mr. Apple" is an American mobster and a member of the Lucchese crime family. Scarfo Jr. is the son of former Philadelphia crime family boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo Sr.
In 2007,Pennsylvania Attorney General Republican Tom Corbett began investigating $3.8 million in public bonuses which were paid to state legislative staffers in the Pennsylvania General Assembly to work on party politics and campaigns. While the bonuses themselves are not illegal,state law forbids state employees from performing campaign work while on the job and forbids payment for campaign work out of taxpayer funds.
Gerald Arthur Sandusky is an American retired college football coach and convicted serial child molester. Sandusky served as an assistant coach for his entire career,mostly at Pennsylvania State University under Joe Paterno,from 1969 to 1999,the last 22 years as defensive coordinator. He received "Assistant Coach of the Year" awards in 1986 and 1999. Sandusky authored several books related to his football coaching experiences.
Kenyatta Johnson is a Democratic member of the Philadelphia City Council. He formerly served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 186th District. He represents the 2nd District,which covers parts of Center City,South and Southwest Philadelphia,as well as the stadium area,Philadelphia International Airport,the Navy Yard and the Eastwick,Grays Ferry,Hawthorne and Point Breeze neighborhoods. Councilman Johnson was re-elected in the May 2015 primary election to represent the 2nd District for a second term.
The sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia,in Pennsylvania,U.S.,is a significant episode in the series of Catholic sex abuse cases in the United States,Ireland and elsewhere. The Philadelphia abuses were substantially revealed through a grand jury investigation in 2005. In early 2011,a new grand jury reported extensive new charges of abusive priests active in the archdiocese. In 2012,a guilty plea by priest Edward Avery and the related trial and conviction of Monsignor William Lynn and mistrial on charges against Rev. James J. Brennan followed from the grand jury's investigations. In 2013,Rev. Charles Engelhardt and teacher Bernard Shero were tried,convicted and sentenced to prison. Lynn was the first official to be convicted in the United States of covering up abuses by other priests in his charge and other senior church officials have been extensively criticized for their management of the issue in the archdiocese.
The "kids for cash" scandal centered on judicial kickbacks to two judges at the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas in Wilkes-Barre,Pennsylvania,US. In 2008,judges Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella were convicted of accepting money in return for imposing harsh adjudications on juveniles to increase occupancy at the PA Child Care for-profit detention centers.
John J. "Johnny Doc" Dougherty is a prominent labor leader in Philadelphia. As a leader within the Philadelphia organized labor scene,Dougherty is a prominent political figure who helps Democratic candidates get elected by directing donations and volunteers.
Kermit Barron Gosnell is an American former physician and serial killer. He provided abortions at his clinic in West Philadelphia. Gosnell was convicted of the murders of three infants who were born alive after using drugs to induce birth,was convicted of manslaughter in connection with the death of one woman during an abortion procedure,and was convicted of several other medically related crimes.
Kathleen Granahan Kane is an American former politician and lawyer who served as the 48th Attorney General of Pennsylvania from 2013 until her resignation in 2016 following her conviction for perjury,obstruction of justice and related charges for illegal activities while she was Attorney General. She was the first woman and first Democrat ever elected to the position.
Christopher B. Epps is a Federal inmate and a former commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) and career employee in the state criminal justice system;he started his career as a teacher. Appointed as Commissioner in 2002 and serving until 2014,he served under three governors and was the agency's longest-serving commissioner its history. Epps came up within the department as a 32-year career employee.
The Fat Leonard scandal is a corruption scandal and ongoing investigation within the United States Navy in the 2000s-2010s involving ship support contractor Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA),a Thai subsidiary of the Glenn Marine Group. The Washington Post called the scandal "perhaps the worst national-security breach of its kind to hit the Navy since the end of the Cold War." The company's chief executive,president,and chairman,Malaysian national Leonard Glenn Francis bribed a large number of uniformed officers of the United States Seventh Fleet with at least a half million dollars in cash,plus travel expenses,luxury items,and prostitutes,in return for classified material about the movements of U.S. ships and submarines,confidential contracting information,and information about active law enforcement investigations into Glenn Defense Marine Asia. Francis then "exploited the intelligence for illicit profit,brazenly ordering his moles to redirect aircraft carriers to ports he controlled in Southeast Asia so he could more easily bilk the Navy for fuel,tugboats,barges,food,water and sewage removal." The Navy,through GDMA,even employed divers to search harbors for explosives. He also directed them to author "Bravo Zulu" memos,which is an informal term for a letter of commendation from the Navy given to civilians who have performed outstanding services for the Navy,in order to bolster GDMA's credibility for jobs "well done".
Lawrence Samuel Krasner is an American lawyer who is the 26th district attorney of Philadelphia. Elected to the position in 2017,Krasner campaigned on a platform to reform elements of the criminal justice system,including to reduce incarceration.
