Petitioner was convicted in Federal District Court, under the
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) chapter of
the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970, of violating 18 U.S.C. §§
1962(c) and (d) by being involved in an arson ring that resulted in
his fraudulently receiving insurance proceeds in payment for the
fire loss of a building he owned. The District Court also entered a
judgment of forfeiture against petitioner for the amount of the
insurance proceeds pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1963(a)(1), which
provides that a person convicted under § 1962 shall forfeit to the
United States "any interest he has acquired or maintained in
violation of section 1962." The Court of Appeals affirmed.
Held: The insurance proceeds petitioner received as a
result of his arson activities constitute an "interest " within the
meaning of § 1963(a)(1), and are therefore subject to forfeiture.
Pp.
464 U. S.
20-29.
(a) Section 1963(a)(1) does not reach only "interests in an
enterprise." Where the term "interest" is not specifically defined
in the RICO statute, it is assumed that the legislative purpose is
expressed by the term's ordinary meaning, which comprehends all
forms of real and personal property, including profits and
proceeds. Congress apparently selected the broad term "interest"
because it did not wish the forfeiture provision to be limited by
rigid and technical definitions drawn from other areas of law and
because the term was fully consistent with the RICO statute's
pattern in utilizing broad terms and concepts. Every property
interest, including a right to profits or proceeds, may be
described as an interest in something. Before profits of an illegal
enterprise are divided, each participant may be said to own an
"interest" in the ill-gotten gains, and after distribution, each
has a possessory interest in currency or other items so
distributed. P.
464 U. S.
20-22.
(b) Had Congress intended to restrict § 1963(a)(1) to an
interest in an enterprise, it presumably would have done so
expressly, as it did in § 1963(a)(2). To construe § 1963(a)(1) to
reach only interests in an enterprise would blunt the section's
effectiveness in combating illegitimate enterprises, and would mean
that whole areas of organized crime activity would be placed beyond
the reach of the RICO statute. Pp.
464 U. S.
22-24.
(c) The fact that the Controlled Substances Act specifically
authorizes the forfeiture of "profits" obtained in illegal drug
enterprises cannot be read as imposing a limitation upon §
1963(a)(1)'s broader language, particularly
Page 464 U. S. 17
where the RICO statute was aimed at organized crime's economic
power in all its forms, whereas the narcotics activity proscribed
by the Controlled Substances Act usually generates only monetary
profits. Pp.
464 U. S.
24-25.
(d) Nor is a limiting construction of § 1963(a)(1) supported by
the fact that certain state racketeering statutes expressly provide
for the forfeiture of "profits," "money," "interest or property,"
or "all property, real or personal," acquired from racketeering,
since those States presumably used such language so as to avoid
narrow interpretations of their laws such as was given the federal
statute in certain Federal District Court opinions. P.
464 U. S.
26.
(e) The legislative history clearly demonstrates that the RICO
statute was intended to provide new weapons of unprecedented scope
for an assault upon organized crime and its economic roots, and
thus was intended to authorize forfeiture of racketeering profits.
The rule of lenity does not apply here, where § 1963(a)(1)'s
language is clear. Pp.
464 U. S.
26-29.
681 F.2d 952, affirmed.
BLACKMUN, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court.
JUSTICE BLACKMUN delivered the opinion of the Court.
This is yet another case concerning the Racketeer Influenced and
Corrupt Organizations (RICO) chapter of the Organized Crime Control
Act of 1970. Pub.L. 91-452, Title IX, 84 Stat. 941, as amended, 18
U.S.C. §§ 1961-1968 (1982 ed.). At issue here is the interpretation
of the chapter's forfeiture provision, § 1963(a)(1), and,
specifically, the meaning of the words "any interest [the
defendant] has acquired . . . in violation of section 1962."
I
On June 8, 1977, petitioner Joseph C. Russello and others were
indicted for racketeering, conspiracy, and mail fraud, in violation
of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341, 1962(c) and (d), and 2. App. 5. After a jury
trial in the United States District Court for
Page 464 U. S. 18
the Middle District of Florida, petitioner was convicted as
charged in four counts of the indictment. The jury then returned
special verdicts for the forfeiture to the United States, under 18
U.S.C. § 1963(a), of four payments, aggregating $340,043.09, made
to petitioner by a fire insurance company. App. 54-57. These
verdicts related to the racketeering activities charged in the
second count of the indictment under which petitioner had been
convicted. The District Court, accordingly, entered a judgment of
forfeiture against petitioner in that amount.
Id. at
58.
Petitioner took an appeal to the former United States Court of
Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. A panel of that court affirmed
petitioner's criminal conviction,
United States v.
Martino, 648 F.2d 367, 406 (1981), and this Court denied
certiorari, 456 U.S. 943 (1982), as to that aspect of the case. The
panel, however, reversed the judgment of forfeiture. App. 64-69.
The full court granted rehearing en banc on the forfeiture issue
and, by a vote of 16-7, vacated that portion of the panel opinion
and then affirmed the forfeiture judgment entered by the District
Court.
United States v. Martino, 681 F.2d 952 (1982).
Because of this significant division among the judges of the Court
of Appeals, and because the Fifth Circuit majority,
id. at
959, stated that its holding "squarely conflict[ed]" with that of
the Ninth Circuit in
United States v. Marubeni America
Corp., 611 F.2d 763 (1980), we granted certiorari. 459 U.S.
1101 (1983). [
Footnote 1] Since
then, the Seventh Circuit has issued an opinion agreeing with the
Ninth Circuit.
United States v. McManigal, 708 F.2d 276,
283-287 (1983).
Page 464 U. S. 19
II
So far as the case in its present posture is concerned, the
basic facts are not in dispute. The majority opinion of the en banc
court described them succinctly:
"Briefly, the evidence showed that a group of individuals
associated for the purpose of committing arson with the intent to
defraud insurance companies. This association in fact enterprise,
composed of an insurance adjuster, homeowners, promoters,
investors, and arsonists, operated to destroy at least eighteen
residential and commercial properties in Tampa and Miami, Florida
between July, 1973, and April, 1976. The panel summarized the
ring's operations as follows:"
" At first, the arsonists only burned buildings already owned by
those associated with the ring. Following a burning, the building
owner filed an inflated proof of loss statement and collected the
insurance proceeds from which his coconspirators were paid. Later,
ring members bought buildings suitable for burning, secured
insurance in excess of value and, after a burning, made claims for
the loss and divided the proceeds."
681 F.2d at 953 (footnote omitted).
Specifically, petitioner was the owner of the Central
Professional Building in Tampa. This structure had two parts, an
original smaller section in front and a newer addition at the rear.
The latter contained apartments, offices, and parking facilities.
Petitioner arranged for arsonists to set fire to the front portion.
He intended to use the insurance proceeds to rebuild that section.
The fire, however, spread to the rear. Joseph Carter, another
member of the arson ring, was the adjuster for petitioner's
insurance claim, and helped him to obtain the highest payments
possible. The resulting payments made up the aggregate sum of
$340,043.09
Page 464 U. S. 20
mentioned above. From those proceeds, petitioner paid Carter
$30,000 for his assistance.
III
Title 18 U.S.C. § 1962(c) states that it shall be unlawful
"for any person employed by or associated with any enterprise
engaged in, or the activities of which affect, interstate . . .
commerce, to conduct or participate, directly or indirectly, in the
conduct of such enterprise's affairs through a pattern of
racketeering activity or collection of unlawful debt."
Section 1962(d) makes it unlawful to conspire to violate §
1962(c). Section 1963(a)(1) provides that a person convicted under
§ 1962 shall forfeit to the United States "any interest he has
acquired or maintained in violation of section 1962."
The sole issue in this case is whether profits and proceeds
derived from racketeering constitute an "interest" within the
meaning of this statute, and are therefore subject to forfeiture.
Petitioner contends that § 1963(a)(1) reaches only "interests in an
enterprise," and does not authorize the forfeiture of mere "profits
and proceeds." He rests his argument upon the propositions that
criminal forfeitures are disfavored in law, and that forfeiture
statutes, as a consequence, must be strictly construed.
In a RICO case recently decided, this Court observed:
"In determining the scope of a statute, we look first to its
language. If the statutory language is unambiguous, in the absence
of 'a clearly expressed legislative intent to the contrary, that
language must ordinarily be regarded as conclusive.'"
United States v. Turkette, 452 U.
S. 576,
452 U. S. 580
(1981), quoting from
Consumer Product Safety Comm'n v. GTE
Sylvania, Inc., 447 U. S. 102,
447 U. S. 108
(1980).
See also Dickerson v. New Banner Institute, Inc.,
460 U. S. 103,
460 U. S. 110
(1983);
Lewis v. United States, 445 U. S.
55,
445 U. S. 60
(1980).
Here, 18 U.S.C. § 1963(a)(1) calls for the forfeiture to the
United States of "any interest . . . acquired . . . in
violation
Page 464 U. S. 21
of section 1962." There is no question that petitioner Russello
acquired the insurance proceeds at issue in violation of § 1962(c);
that much has been definitely and finally settled. Accordingly, if
those proceeds qualify as an "interest," they are forfeitable.
The term "interest" is not specifically defined in the RICO
statute. This silence compels us to "start with the assumption that
the legislative purpose is expressed by the ordinary meaning of the
words used."
Richards v. United States, 369 U. S.
1,
369 U. S. 9
(1962). The ordinary meaning of "interest" surely encompasses a
right to profits or proceeds.
See Webster's Third New
International Dictionary 1178 (1976), broadly defining "interest,"
among other things, as a "good," "benefit," or "profit." Random
House Dictionary of the English Language 741 (1979) defines
interest to include "benefit." Black's Law Dictionary 729 (5th ed.,
1979) provides a significant definition of "interest": "The most
general term that can be employed to denote a right, claim, title,
or legal share in something." It is thus apparent that the term
"interest" comprehends all forms of real and personal property,
including profits and proceeds.
This Court repeatedly has relied upon the term "interest" in
defining the meaning of "property" in the Due Process Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution.
See Perry v.
Sindermann, 408 U. S. 593,
408 U. S. 601
(1972) ("
property' denotes a broad range of interests");
Logan v. Zimmerman Brush Co., 455 U.
S. 422, 455 U. S. 430
(1982); Jago v. Van Curen, 454 U. S.
14, 454 U. S. 17-18
(1981). It undoubtedly was because Congress did not wish the
forfeiture provision of § 1963(a) to be limited by rigid and
technical definitions drawn from other areas of the law that it
selected the broad term "interest" to describe those things that
are subject to forfeiture under the statute. Congress selected this
general term apparently because it was fully consistent with the
pattern of the RICO statute in utilizing terms and concepts of
breadth. Among these are "enterprise" in § 1961(4);
"racketeering
Page 464 U. S. 22
activity" in § 1961(1) (1982 ed.); and "participate" in §
1962(c).
Petitioner himself has not attempted to define the term
"interest" as used in § 1963(a)(1). He insists, however, that the
term does not reach money or profits because, he says: "'Interest,'
by definition, includes of necessity an interest in something."
Brief for Petitioner 9. Petitioner then asserts that the
"something" emerges from the wording of § 1963(a)(1) itself, that
is, an interest "acquired . . . in violation of section 1962," and
thus derives its meaning from the very activities barred by the
statute. In other words, a direct relationship exists between that
which is subject to forfeiture as a result of racketeering activity
and that which constitutes racketeering. This relationship, it is
said, means that forfeiture is confined to an interest in an
"enterprise" itself. Petitioner derives support for this approach
from
United States v. Marubeni America Corp., supra, and
from language contained in two Federal District Court opinions,
United States v. Meyers, 432 F.
Supp. 456, 461 (WD Pa.1977), and
United States v.
Thevis, 474 F.
Supp. 134, 142 (ND Ga.1979),
aff'd on other grounds,
665 F.2d 616 (CA5 1982). He also now relies on the
McManigal case,
supra, recently decided by the
Seventh Circuit. Tr. of Oral Arg. 4.
We do not agree. Every property interest, including a right to
profits or proceeds, may be described as an interest in something.
Before profits of an illegal enterprise are divided, each
participant may be said to own an "interest" in the ill-gotten
gains. After distribution, each will have a possessory interest in
currency or other items so distributed. We therefore conclude that
the language of the statute plainly covers the insurance proceeds
petitioner received as a result of his arson activities.
IV
We are fortified in this conclusion by our examination of the
structure of the RICO statute. We disagree with those
Page 464 U. S. 23
courts that have felt that a broad construction of the word
"interest" is necessarily undermined by the statute's other
forfeiture provisions. The argument for a narrow construction of §
1963(a)(1) is refuted by the language of the succeeding subsection
(a)(2). The former speaks broadly of "any interest . . . acquired,"
while the latter reaches only
"any interest in . . . any enterprise which [the defendant] has
established[,] operated, controlled, conducted, or participated in
the conduct of, in violation of section 1962."
Similar less expansive language appears in §§ 1962(b) and
1964(a).
"[W]here Congress includes particular language in one section of
a statute but omits it in another section of the same Act, it is
generally presumed that Congress acts intentionally and purposely
in the disparate inclusion or exclusion."
United States v. Wong Kim Bo, 472 F.2d 720, 722 (CA5
1972).
See United States v. Wooten, 688 F.2d 941, 950 (CA4
1982). Had Congress intended to restrict § 1963(a)(1) to an
interest in an enterprise, it presumably would have done so
expressly, as it did in the immediately following subsection
(a)(2).
See North Haven Board of Education v. Bell,
456 U. S. 512,
456 U. S. 521
(1982);
United States v. Naftalin, 441 U.
S. 768,
441 U. S.
773-774 (1979). In the latter case,
id. at
441 U. S. 773,
the Court said: "The short answer is that Congress did not write
the statute that way. " We refrain from concluding here that the
differing language in the two subsections has the same meaning in
each. We would not presume to ascribe this difference to a simple
mistake in draftsmanship.
The evolution of these statutory provisions supplies further
evidence that Congress intended § 1963(a)(1) to extend beyond an
interest in an enterprise. An early proposed version of RICO, S.
1861, 91st Cong., 1st Sess. (1969), had a single forfeiture
provision for § 1963(a) that was limited to "all interest in the
enterprise." This provision, however, later was divided into the
present two subsections and the phrase "in the enterprise" was
excluded from the first. Where Congress includes limiting language
in an earlier version of a bill
Page 464 U. S. 24
but deletes it prior to enactment, it may be presumed that the
limitation was not intended.
See Arizona v. California,
373 U. S. 546,
373 U. S.
580-581 (1963).
See Weiner, Crime Must Not Pay:
RICO Criminal Forfeiture in Perspective, 1981 N.Ill.U.L.Rev. 225,
238, and n. 49. It is no answer to say, as petitioner does, Brief
for Petitioner 17-18, that, if the term "interest" were as
all-encompassing as suggested by the majority opinion of the Court
of Appeals, § 1963(a)(2) would have no meaning independent of §
1963(a)(1), and would be mere surplusage. This argument is plainly
incorrect. Subsection (a)(1) reaches "any interest," whether or not
in an enterprise, provided it was "acquired . . . in violation of
section 1962." Subsection (a)(2), on the other hand, is restricted
to an interest in an enterprise, but that interest itself need not
have been illegally acquired. Thus, there are things forfeitable
under one, but not the other, of each of the subsections. [
Footnote 2]
We note that the RICO statute's definition of the term
"enterprise" in § 1961(4) encompasses both legal entities and
illegitimate associations-in-fact.
See United States v.
Turkette, 452 U.S. at
452 U. S. 580-593. Forfeiture of an interest in an
illegitimate association-in-fact ordinarily would be of little use,
because an association of that kind rarely has identifiable assets;
instead, proceeds or profits usually are distributed immediately.
Thus, construing § 1963(a)(1) to reach only interests in an
enterprise would blunt the effectiveness of the provision in
combating illegitimate enterprises, and would mean that "[w]hole
areas of organized criminal activity would be placed beyond" the
reach of the statute.
United States v. Turkette, 452 U.S.
at
452 U. S.
589.
Petitioner stresses that 21 U.S.C. § 848(a)(2), contained in the
Controlled Substances Act, 84 Stat. 1242, as amended, specifically
authorizes the forfeiture of "profits" obtained in a continuing
criminal enterprise engaged in certain drug offenses. Brief for
Petitioner 6-7. The Ninth Circuit, in
Page 464 U. S. 25
Marubeni, 611 F.2d at 766, n. 7, placed similar
reliance upon § 848(a)(2), and observed that the two statutes were
passed by the same Congress in the same month. We feel, however,
that the specific mention of "profits" in the Controlled Substances
Act cannot be accepted as an indication that the broader language
of § 1963(a)(1) was not meant to reach profits as well as other
types of property interests. Language in one statute usually sheds
little light upon the meaning of different language in another
statute, even when the two are enacted at or about the same time.
The term "profits" is specific; the term "interest" is general. The
use of the specific in the one statute cannot fairly be read as
imposing a limitation upon the general provision in the other
statute. In addition, the RICO statute was aimed at organized
crime's economic power in all its forms, and it was natural to use
the broad term "interest" to fulfill that aim. In contrast, the
narcotics activity proscribed by § 848 usually generates only
monetary profits, a fact which would explain the use of the
narrower term in § 848(a)(2).
Petitioner, of course, correctly suggests that Members of
Congress who voted for the RICO statute were aware of the
Controlled Substances Act.
See 116 Cong.Rec. 33651 (1970)
(remarks of Rep. Brotzman);
id. at 1180-1182 (remarks of
Sen. Thurmond);
id. at 33631 (remarks of Rep. Weicker);
id. at 33646 (remarks of Rep. Kastenmeier);
id.
at 35318 (remarks of Rep. Anderson). It is most unlikely, however,
that, without explanation, a potent forfeiture weapon was withheld
from the RICO statute, intended for use in a broad assault on
organized crime, while the same weapon was included in the
Controlled Substances Act, meant for use in only one part of the
same struggle. If this was Congress' intent, one would expect it to
have said so in clear and understandable terms.
Petitioner also suggests that subsequent proposed legislation
demonstrates that the RICO forfeiture provision of 1970 excludes
profits. Brief for Petitioner 29-34. The bills to which petitioner
refers, however, were introduced in order to
Page 464 U. S. 26
overcome the decisions in
Marubeni, Meyers, and
Thevis. See, e.g., S. 2320, 97th Cong., 2d Sess.
(1982). The introduction of these bills hardly suggests that their
sponsors viewed those decisions as correct interpretations of §
1963(a)(1).
See United States v. Gordon, 638 F.2d 886,
888, n. 5 (CA5),
cert. denied, 452 U.S. 909 (1981). In any
event, it is well settled that "
the views of a subsequent
Congress form a hazardous basis for inferring the intent of an
earlier one.'" Jefferson County Pharmaceutical Assn. v. Abbott
Laboratories, 460 U. S. 150,
460 U. S. 165,
n. 27 (1983), quoting from United States v. Price,
361 U. S. 304,
361 U. S. 313
(1960). See also United States v. Clark, 445 U. S.
23, 445 U. S. 33, n.
9 (1980).
Neither are we persuaded by petitioner's argument that his
position is supported by the fact that certain state racketeering
statutes expressly provide for the forfeiture of "profits,"
"money," "interest or property," or "all property, real or
personal," acquired from racketeering. Brief for Petitioner 8-9.
Nearly all of the state statutes postdate the
Meyers and
Thevis District Court decisions.
See, e.g.,
Colo.Rev.Stat. § 18-17-106 (Supp.1982) (enacted in 1981);
R.I.Gen.Laws § 7-15-3 (Supp.1982) (enacted in 1979). The
legislatures of those States presumably employed language different
from that of § 1963(a)(1) so as to avoid narrow interpretations of
their laws along the lines of the narrow interpretations given the
federal statute by the courts in
Meyers and
Thevis.
V
If it is necessary to turn to the legislative history of the
RICO statute, one finds that that history does not reveal, as
petitioner would have us hold,
see Brief for Petitioner
11-21, a limited congressional intent.
The legislative history clearly demonstrates that the RICO
statute was intended to provide new weapons of unprecedented scope
for an assault upon organized crime and its economic roots.
Congress' statement of findings and purpose in
Page 464 U. S. 27
enacting Pub.L. 91-452, 84 Stat. 922, is set forth in its § 1.
This statement dramatically describes the problem presented by
organized crime. Congress declared,
id. at 923:
"It is the purpose of this Act to seek the eradication of
organized crime in the United States . . . by providing enhanced
sanctions and new remedies to deal with the unlawful activities of
those engaged in organized crime."
This Court has recognized the significance of this statement of
findings and purpose.
United States v. Turkette, 452 U.S.
at
452 U. S.
588-589. Further, Congress directed, by § 904(a) of
Pub.L. 91-452, 84 Stat. 947: "The provisions of this title shall be
liberally construed to effectuate its remedial purposes." So far as
we have been made aware, this is the only substantive federal
criminal statute that contains such a directive; a similar
provision, however, appears in the Criminal Appeals Act, 18 U.S.C.
§ 3731.
Congress emphasized the need to fashion new remedies in order to
achieve its far-reaching objectives.
See S.Rep. No.
91-617, p. 76 (1969).
"What is needed here . . . are new approaches that will deal not
only with individuals, but also with the economic base through
which those individuals constitute such a serious threat to the
economic wellbeing of the Nation. In short, an attack must be made
on their source of economic power itself, and the attack must take
place on all available fronts."
Id. at 79. Senator Scott spoke of "new legal weapons,"
116 Cong.Rec. 819 (1970), and Senator McClellan stressed the need
for new penal remedies.
Id. at 591-592. Representative
Poff, floor manager of the bill in the House, made similar
observations.
Id. at 35193. Representative Rodino observed
that "[d]rastic methods . . . are essential, and we must develop
law enforcement measures at least as efficient as those of
organized crime."
Id. at 35199. The RICO statute was
viewed as one such "extraordinary" weapon.
Id. at 602
(remarks of Sen. Hruska). And the forfeiture provision was
Page 464 U. S. 28
intended to serve all the aims of the RICO statute, namely, to
"punish, deter, incapacitate, and . . . directly to remove the
corrupting influence from the channels of commerce."
Id.
at 18955 (remarks of Sen. McClellan).
The legislative history leaves no doubt that, in the view of
Congress, the economic power of organized crime derived from its
huge illegal profits.
See Blakey, The RICO Civil Fraud
Action in Context: Reflections on
Bennett v. Berg, 58
Notre Dame L.Rev. 237, 249-256 (1982). Congress could not have
hoped successfully to attack organized crime's economic roots
without reaching racketeering profits. During the congressional
debates, the sources and magnitude of organized crime's income were
emphasized repeatedly.
See, e.g., 115 Cong.Rec. 5873,
5884-5885 (1969); 116 Cong.Rec. 590, 592 (1970) (remarks of Sen.
McClellan). From all this, the intent to authorize forfeiture of
racketeering profits seems obvious. H.R.Rep. No. 91-1549, p. 57
(1970), recites that the forfeiture provision extends to "all
property and interests, as broadly defined, which are related to
the violations."
It is true that Congress viewed the RICO statute in large part
as a response to organized crime's infiltration of legitimate
enterprises.
United States v. Turkette, 452 U.S. at
452 U. S. 591.
But Congress' concerns were not limited to infiltration. The
broader goal was to remove the profit from organized crime by
separating the racketeer from his dishonest gains. Forfeiture of
interest in an enterprise often would do little to deter; indeed,
it might only encourage the speedy looting of an infiltrated
company. It is unlikely that Congress intended to enact a
forfeiture provision that provided an incentive for activity of
this kind while authorizing forfeiture of an interest of little
worth in a bankrupt shell.
We are not persuaded otherwise by the presence of a 1969 letter
from the then Deputy Attorney General to Senator McClellan.
See Measures Relating to Organized Crime: Hearings before
the Subcommittee on Criminal Laws and Procedures of the Senate
Committee on the Judiciary, 91st
Page 464 U. S. 29
Cong., 1st Sess., 407 (1969). That letter, with its reference to
"one's interest in the enterprise" does not indicate, for us, any
congressional intent to preclude forfeiture of racketeering
profits. The reference, indeed, is not to § 1963(a) as finally
enacted, but to an earlier version in which forfeiture was to be
expressly limited to an interest in an enterprise. The letter was
merely following the language of the then pending bill.
Furthermore, the real purpose of the sentence was not to explain
what the statutory provision meant, but to explain why the
Department of Justice believed it was constitutional.
The rule of lenity, which this Court has recognized in certain
situations of statutory ambiguity,
see United States v.
Turkette, 452 U.S. at
452 U. S. 587, n. 10, has no application here. That
rule
"comes into operation at the end of the process of construing
what Congress has expressed, not at the beginning as an overriding
consideration of being lenient to wrongdoers."
Callanan v. United States, 364 U.
S. 587,
364 U. S. 596
(1961). Here, the language of the RICO forfeiture provision is
clear, and "the rule of lenity does not come into play."
United
States v. Turkette, 452 U.S. at
452 U. S. 588,
n. 10.
We therefore disagree with the reasoning of the respective
courts in the
Marubeni, McMangal, Meyers, and
Thevis cases, and we affirm the judgment of the United
States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. [
Footnote 3]
It is so ordered.
[
Footnote 1]
The Solicitor General, while perceiving "a factual distinction
between
Marubeni and the present case," felt that "the
holding and reasoning of
Marubeni would require the Ninth
Circuit to reach the opposite result from the Fifth Circuit on the
facts of the instant case." Memorandum for United States 4, n. 3.
Accordingly, he joined in the prayer that a writ of certiorari be
granted.
[
Footnote 2]
There may well be factual situations to which both subsections
apply. The subsections, however, are clearly not wholly
redundant.
[
Footnote 3]
In our ruling today, we recognize that we have not resolved any
ambiguity that might be inherent in the terms "profits" and
"proceeds." Our use of those terms is not intended to suggest a
particular means of calculating the precise amount that is subject
to RICO forfeiture in any given case. We hold simply that the
"interests" subject to forfeiture under § 1963(a)(1) are not
limited to interests in an enterprise.