How is criminal intent proven in a white collar crime case?

In South Dakota, criminal intent in white collar crime cases must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. This means that the prosecution must be able to demonstrate that the accused knew that their action was illegal when it was committed. One way of doing this is to establish a series of events which demonstrate that the crime was premeditated. For example, if a person was found to have made false statements in order to obtain a loan, for which they subsequently defaulted on, that could be used to suggest that the intent to commit a crime was present before the transaction ever took place. Another way to prove intent is to look at the circumstantial evidence present in the case. For example, if a person was found to have misrepresented the value of a property in order to secure a loan, the court may look at the quantity of documents they created in order to carry out the transaction. The number of documents could indicate that the person knew that what they were doing was wrong and were attempting to cover their tracks. Finally, the court may look at the person’s history of white collar offenses, if any, to gain a better understanding of their state of mind when the crime was committed. This could include past frauds, embezzlements, or other financial crimes. If the accused has a history of similar behavior, this could be used to establish that the crime was committed with criminal intent.

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How is criminal intent proven in a white collar crime case?

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