While the Cole memo does give peace of mind to those business owners acting in good faith within Colorado, it does not change the federal laws related to use, sale, and distribution of the product. As stated in the Cole memorandum, this is merely a guide to instruct the attorneys potentially prosecuting these cases cannot be used as a defense in the event of an indictment. The memorandum also allows the attorneys to evaluate special circumstances on a case by case basis to see if an exception can be made. If the circumstances warrant action, the attorney should prosecute the case regardless of the presence of any of the above eight priorities. In essence, the memo instructs prosecutors look the other way in relation to legal, regulated marijuana
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This Act, established in 1970, sought to curtail money laundering in the financial sector and increase the chance of prosecuting those who were caught laundering money. BSA also created processes for bank and other financial institutions to mitigate the risk of unknowingly becoming accomplices in a money laundering scheme. It also allows for the prosecuting of those institutions that did not do their due diligence in dealings with their clients. These penalties can range from enormous fines to years of prison time for the bank officers. BSA requires banks and other financial institutions to report suspicious activity through a number of ways and reports. These reports include Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs), Monetary Instrument Logs (MILs), and Suspicious Activities Reports (SARs). These are sent to the appropriate law enforcement agency in order to make them aware of any suspicious activity and allows them to make a designation whether an investigation needs to be …show more content…
While the previous reports had a bright line test delineating which transactions require filing, the SAR is left up to the professional judgment of the officers of the financial institution or bank. A SAR needs to be filed if the officer of the financial institution feels the customer is deliberately trying to avoid one of the previous other filings from being reported. The SAR is also filed in the instances of suspecting criminal activities such as structuring or money laundering. In addition, a bank officer is not allowed, under the law, to let a citizen know a SAR has been filed. Doing so, may give criminal a warning to destroy any evidence associated with the crime. (Suspicious Activity Reporting—Overview). Money laundering is the process of legitimizing ill-gotten or illegal revenues by creating a paper trail that makes the currency appear as if it was the result of a legitimate business. Common money laundering schemes consist of opening cash businesses such as laundromats or restaurants. The owners of these illegitimate businesses then report their criminal profits as legitimate earnings of the business. This allows criminals to use the money for criminal enterprises without fear of
This Act, established in 1970, sought to curtail money laundering in the financial sector and increase the chance of prosecuting those who were caught laundering money. BSA also created processes for bank and other financial institutions to mitigate the risk of unknowingly becoming accomplices in a money laundering scheme. It also allows for the prosecuting of those institutions that did not do their due diligence in dealings with their clients. These penalties can range from enormous fines to years of prison time for the bank officers. BSA requires banks and other financial institutions to report suspicious activity through a number of ways and reports. These reports include Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs), Monetary Instrument Logs (MILs), and Suspicious Activities Reports (SARs). These are sent to the appropriate law enforcement agency in order to make them aware of any suspicious activity and allows them to make a designation whether an investigation needs to be …show more content…
While the previous reports had a bright line test delineating which transactions require filing, the SAR is left up to the professional judgment of the officers of the financial institution or bank. A SAR needs to be filed if the officer of the financial institution feels the customer is deliberately trying to avoid one of the previous other filings from being reported. The SAR is also filed in the instances of suspecting criminal activities such as structuring or money laundering. In addition, a bank officer is not allowed, under the law, to let a citizen know a SAR has been filed. Doing so, may give criminal a warning to destroy any evidence associated with the crime. (Suspicious Activity Reporting—Overview). Money laundering is the process of legitimizing ill-gotten or illegal revenues by creating a paper trail that makes the currency appear as if it was the result of a legitimate business. Common money laundering schemes consist of opening cash businesses such as laundromats or restaurants. The owners of these illegitimate businesses then report their criminal profits as legitimate earnings of the business. This allows criminals to use the money for criminal enterprises without fear of