RICO statutes are being tested against the oil company propaganda Leviathan

For white collar criminals, most laws are inadequate to nail them. Prosecutors usually cannot prove criminal intent so cases go unprosecuted. My estimate is that about 99.999% of white collar crimes are never even prosecuted for lack of evidence of intent. All the criminals have to do is what Trump has successfully done for decades. Things like talking in code, and making sure that underlings get whacked while the boss is shielded by plausible deniability work very well.

Out of desperation in the face of decades of an extremely effective oil and energy sector propaganda Leviathan that has blocked most attempts to regulate pollution and deal with climate change, Puerto Rico is trying a new tactic in court. It is going after big pollute-for-profit corporations using laws designed to nail Mafia crime bosses. The Guardian writes:
Big oil is behind conspiracy to deceive public, 
first climate racketeering lawsuit says

Lawyer in a civil lawsuit launched by towns in hurricane-hit Puerto Rico describes why it is using laws used to target mob bosses

The same racketeering legislation used to bring down mob bosses, motorcycle gangs, football executives and international fraudsters is to be tested against oil and coal companies who are accused of conspiring to deceive the public over the climate crisis.

In an ambitious move, an attempt will be made to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for “decades of deception” in a lawsuit being brought by communities in Puerto Rico that were devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017.  
The 1970 Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (Rico) Act was originally intended to combat criminal enterprises like the mafia, but has since been used in civil courts to litigate harms caused by opioids, vehicle emissions and even e-cigarettes as organized crime cases.
Whether this will work or not is unclear. But at this point, the RICO tactic is reasonable to try. There is little or nothing to lose and maybe a lot to be gained if decades of effective polluter propaganda can be held against the responsible people and/or companies.


Puerto Rico in 2017 after Hurricane Maria
'Twas a bit more than tempest in teapot

Is this what false anti-climate 
change propaganda can do? 


By Germaine: The anti-pollution person 

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