White collar charges

Court by court

Federal court

Common federal charges include:

• Wire fraud: a scheme or artifice to defraud carried out using wire, radio or television communication in interstate or foreign commerce ^[1].
• False statements on a loan or credit application: knowingly making a false statement or report to influence the lenders and federal bodies the statute lists ^[2].
• Money laundering: a financial transaction with property the person knows is the proceeds of some form of unlawful activity ^[3].
• Conspiracy under the general statute, 18 U.S.C. § 371: two or more people agreeing to commit an offense against the United States or to defraud it, plus at least one act by one of them to carry out the agreement ^[4].

Under Justice Department policy, a "target" is a person the prosecutor or grand jury has substantial evidence linking to a crime and whom the prosecutor considers a likely defendant ^[5]. Prosecutors are encouraged, in appropriate cases, to notify a target before seeking an indictment, but that is internal policy, not a right ^[6].

New York, New Jersey, Florida and Pennsylvania

State prosecutors bring financial cases too. In New York many are charged as larceny by false pretenses or false promise ^[7]; New Jersey and Pennsylvania charge theft by deception ^{[8] [9]}; and Florida has an organized fraud statute graded by the value obtained ^[10]. See fraud charges for more on each.