Alan P. Caplan
Attorney at Law
Email: alan@alancaplan.com
© Copyright 2019. All Rights Reserved. Member Massachusetts Bar
United States v. Chong:
Mr. Chong was charged as the lead defendant in a wide-ranging RICO prosecution in federal court in Oakland, California, charging drug transactions, attempted murder, loan sharking, extortion and gambling. The government alleged that he was the head of the San Francisco branch of the Hong Kong-based Wo Hop To Triad, and that he attempted to exercise control over all Chinese organized crime in the United States. After a 2-month jury trial in Oakland, Mr. Chong was found guilty of a number of the offenses and acquitted of others. He was sentenced to 15 years incarceration.
I also represented Mr. Chong in his successful appeal to the Ninth Circuit, which vacated his "murder for hire" conviction on grounds that the evidence was not sufficient to support the jury's guilty verdict. After the matter was returned to the Federal District Court for re-sentencing, Mr. Chong's sentence was reduced by 42 months.
United States v. Rizzo:
Mr. and Mrs. Rizzo were charged in federal court in Phoenix, Arizona with a number of tax related offenses, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, perjury and obstruction of justice as a part of an alleged "tax protester" scheme. Defendants ultimately pled guilty and a series of sentencing hearings have been ongoing for approximately 8 months, leading to a 2 year sentence for Carol Rizzo and a 4 year sentence for John Rizzo.
United States v. Smullen:
Mr. Smullen, a member of the Hells Angels, was indicted in December 2003 in the U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, Nevada, together with 43 co-defendants, and charged with numerous counts of Violence in Aid of Racketeering, and related firearms counts, based upon an altercation at Harrah's Hotel and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada in April, 2002 at which 3 people were killed and many others injured. Mr. Smullen was in the first group of twelve defendants who began trial in September 2007. After 6 weeks of jury trial, the government agreed to dismiss the case against Mr. Smullen and 35 of his co-defendants with prejudice. Six defendants pled guilty to lesser offenses resulting in no additional prison time.
State of California v. Francisco Torres:
Mr. Torres and seven others were charged in 2007 with the murder of a San Francisco Police Officer in 1971 as a part of an alleged conspiracy by a group called the "Black Liberation Army". Mr. Torres was released from custody after his bond was reduced from $3,000,000 to $600,000. After preparation of a lengthy Motion to Dismiss based upon impermissible, prejudicial pre-charge delay, the charges against Mr. Torres were dismissed with prejudice in 2011.
United States v. Frederick Donahue:
Mr. Donahue was a defendant in the cases pending in the District of Nevada and in the Clark County Nevada state court, arising out of the 2002 at Harrah's Hotel and Casino in Laughlin. He allegedly shot one individual and wounded another. The cases were resolved in 2009 with plea bargains resulting in a 30 month federal sentence and an equivalent state court concurrent sentence.
United States v. Tyrone Chacon:
Mr. Chacon, a member of the Brothers Speed Motorcycle Club in Boise, Idaho, was sentenced to a term of 265 months of incarceration by the U.S. District Court in Idaho. I represented him in a motion for post-conviction (
§
2255) relief based upon ineffective assistance of counsel at sentencing. After filing a comprehensive motion and supporting documents and declarations, the government agreed to support, and the judge agreed to an 84 month reduction in Mr. Chacon's sentence.
United States v. Frank Iacaboni:
Mr. Iacaboni, represented by other counsel at trial, was convicted in federal court in Boston, Massachusetts after a multi-defendant three month trial of racketeering-based and alleged mafia-related offenses. He was sentenced to a mandatory minimum 15 year sentence. I represented him in his appeal of those convictions to the First Circuit Court of Appeals, which was denied. I then prepared and filed a petition for writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to reverse the Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court Docketed the petition and ordered the Solicitor General to respond; however, the petition was eventually denied.
REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLING OF CASES LITIGATED (cont.)
1995 - 2013 (cont.)