APRI Highlights - Summer 2001

White Collar Crime Program

Sean Morgan, Director

In addition to the everincreasing financial cost, the human cost of white collar crime requires that prosecutors and law enforcement personnel deal aggressively with these crimes. Today, with widespread access, convenience and usage, the Internet is fast becoming the medium of choice for fraudsters to commit traditional white collar crimes.

With funding from BJA, APRI has worked in partnership with the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), the National White Collar Crime Center (NWCCC) and AARP since September 1997 to help prosecutors and other law enforcement professionals address telemarketing fraud problems in their jurisdictions.

APRI and its partners presented three intensive telemarketing fraud training programs to prosecutors, investigators and victim assistance professionals in February, April and June of this year. APRI and NAAG will be partnering to conduct intensive intrastate telemarketing fraud trial advocacy courses this fall and winter.

Additionally, APRI and AARP jointly produced a comprehensive telemarketing fraud manual for prosecutors and other criminal justice professionals. This manual, Telemarketing Fraud: Investigation, Prosecution and Prevention, includes investigative and trial techniques and highlights key aspects of telemarketing fraud prevention programs from various local prosecutors' offices. The manual is available free of charge on the APRI Web site: www.ndaa-apri.org.

In response to the burgeoning need for training and technical assistance in dealing with frauds perpetrated on the Internet, APRI's White Collar Crime Program will soon be incorporating a new component in its trainings to address additional crimes such as identity theft, insurance fraud and credit card fraud.

To supplement its comprehensive training, APRI's White Collar Crime Program also provides the most current information available concerning legal research and trial strategies by using on-line legal data services, gathering information from local prosecutors and other professionals and subscribing to professional journals. This information is available to prosecutors and law enforcement professionals by telephone, fax, e-mail and regular post.

For more information about APRI's White Collar Crime Program, please contact whitecollar@ndaa-apri.org.