Surveillance Changes under the PATRIOT Act

The PATRIOT Act provides federal and international agencies with the ability to track and intercept oral, written, and electronic communications.

FEDERAL STRIKE FORCES

United States Attorneys' offices have federal strike forces. Such strike forces are called Organized Crime Strike Force Units (OCSFUS). The OCSFUS are responsible for supervising and prosecuting cases against criminal enterprises that operate in or that affect the United States. The Attorney General's Organized Crime Council identifies those criminal enterprises. The terms "organized crime" refer to criminal groups that engage in repeated illegal activities over an extended period of time within the United States.

JURY INSTRUCTIONS ON APPLICATION OF THE LAW TO THE FACTS

A jury's role in a criminal case is to determine the guilt or innocence of a defendant. In accordance with this role, the jury must also judge the facts of the case. In order to make its factual determination, the jury is instructed on the law by a trial court. The trial court sets forth the law in written instructions that are delivered to the jury before the prosecution and the defense make their closing arguments. The jury is not permitted to receive the law from any source other than the trial court.

PROBATION

Probation is a type of sentencing by which a trial court suspends the imposition of imprisonment and releases a defendant into the community based upon certain conditions. Probation is an alternative to imprisonment. Probation is similar to parole because it grants freedom from incarceration.

Insurance Fraud and Federal Prosecutions

Although there is no specific federal statute prohibiting insurance fraud because there is a nexus with interstate commerce, federal prosecution for fraudulent conduct may be sought under a variety of different statutes.