Criminal Justice Research Papers

Illegal weapons trafficking accounts for only a small percentage of the billion plus dollar annual worldwide arms trade, but it plays a significant role in crime, terrorism, insurgency, drug trafficking, and other illegal activities. Transnational criminal organizations deal almost exclusively in illegal weapons. Individuals and organizations have used the illegal weapons trade to harm and intimidate unarmed civilian populations and to expand their criminal enterprises. Illegal weapons trafficking has had a significant impact on the spread of international drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) and has even had an impact in the human trafficking industry. Many of those directly affected by the resulting violence of the illegal arms trade are innocent civilians. The majority of the illegal arms trade involves weapons considered to be small arms and light weapons. This article provides an overview of illegal weapons, the individuals and organizations that buy them, and the response by governments to the illegal weapons trade. Defining Illegal Weapons In 1997, in the most comprehensive report to date, and a report that is still used as the benchmark by law enforcement, military, governments, and other civilian agencies, the United Nations issued a comprehensive report that classified weapons commonly involved in illegal trafficking. The 1997 report General and Complete Disarmament: Small Arms. Report of the Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms defined illegal arms as small arms and light weapons used by “all armed forces and internal security forces as weapons for self-protection or self-defense, close or short-range combat, direct or indirect fire, and against tanks or aircraft at relatively short distances.” Small arms were defined as those used by one person for personal use and light weapons as those used by several persons serving as a crew. Small arms include (1) revolvers and self-loading pistols, (2) rifles and carbines, (3) submachine guns, (4) assault rifles, and (5) light machine guns. Light weapons include (1) heavy machine guns, (2) handheld underbarrel and mounted grenade launchers, (3) portable antiaircraft guns, (4) portable anti-tank guns/recoilless rifles, (5) portable launchers of anti-tank missile and rocket systems, (6) portable launchers of antiaircraft missile systems, and (7) mortars of 100 mm or less. Light weapons 3, 4, and 5 can be either handheld or mounted. The United Nations also included ammunition and explosives as part of the illegal arms trade as well as (1) cartridge rounds for small arms, (2) shells and missiles for light weapons, (3) loaded mobile containers for antiaircraft and anti-tank systems (single action), (4) hand grenades (antipersonnel or anti-tank), (5) landmines, and (6) explosives. Small arms and small light weapons can all be carried and used by one or two people. Light weapons can be carried by persons, pack animals, and/or light vehicles such as pickup trucks. All are highly mobile (i.e., they can be easily packed and moved, even while in use) and can be adapted for use in a variety of climates, terrains, and conditions. An operator can assemble a light weapon, fire it, and move it to a new position before being […]

Street gangs are rapidly evolving, becoming regional, national, and even international in terms of criminal operations. This globalization of gang-related criminal activity has been facilitated by improved technology, advancements in telecommunications, and increased mobility due to a vast and ever growing network of interstate highways and transatlantic airline flights. As a result, what once were neighborhood criminal gangs are now more organized gangs conducting criminal operations in multiple cities, states, and foreign countries. Some have evolved into transnational gangs that routinely conduct criminal activity that is planned in one country but executed in another country. After reviewing varying definitions and classifications of gangs, this article focuses on the psychological control of gangs and the transformation of street gangs into transnational gangs. Definition There is no uniform definition of what constitutes a transnational gang or even a criminal gang. The definitions differ from state to state and from country to country. But, a criminal gang is generally defined as: A group of three or more individuals, who have a common bond, establish territorial turf, and regularly conduct gang-related criminal activity. In contrast, a transnational gang infers a much larger territorial turf that spans the borders of two or more foreign countries. The transnational gang is a sophisticated criminal enterprise that routinely plans and controls criminal activity in one country that is then executed in another country. Its criminal operations are global in nature, often spanning the borders of several international countries. Classifications First, Second, and Third Generation Gangs For purposes of comparison, John P. Sullivan first classified criminal gangs into three separate categories. The first category, the first generation gang, is characterized as the traditional neighborhood or criminal street gang. It is local in nature, turf-oriented, and generally limited to a somewhat small geographic area. Its gang-related criminal activities, membership, and organizational structure are also limited. For the most part, the criminal activities are opportunistic, individualistic, and unorganized. Generally, the criminal activities include localized drug trafficking, extortion, burglaries, robberies, battery, petty theft, and murder. The second generation gang is more evolved, more entrepreneurial, and enjoys more structured leadership than the first generation gang. A second generation gang is most often a well- established criminal street gang. Its criminal activities are organized, and the primary focus of the gang is financial gain, market share, and profit. Criminal operations, such as drug trafficking and extortion, are more complex and may span multiple municipalities, cities, or states. If the gang is located near a foreign country, the criminal operations may span international borders. Due to the larger network of criminal activity of a second generation gang, leadership is more defined. It often has a set of rules and regulations, requires an oath of loyalty, and administers punishment for disobedient gang members or disrespectful rival gang members. The initiation phase most often includes a “blood in, blood out” loyalty pledge whereby the only way out of the gang is death. The second generation criminal gang provides not only a sense of family and belonging but […]

In the mid-20th century, around the time of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, radical inmate gangs appeared in state prisons in California and Texas. In 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized the existence of six major prison gangs in the California Department of Corrections: Mexican Mafia, Nuestra Familia, Black Guerrilla Family, Aryan Brotherhood, Nazi Low Riders, and Texas Syndicate (TS). The Court cited (vs. street gang members in prison) the virtual absence of noncriminal, nondeviant activities by its members as a distinguishing feature of prison gangs. The Court wrote that prison gang members are violent zealots devoted to acting out as prison gangsters while proclaiming and advocating a separatist, racist creed and that prison gang members are violent, racist murderers who lie, cheat, and steal. In December 2014, the United States had approximately 1,800 state and federal prisons. Federal and state prisons held 1.5 million convicted felons from among the 317 million people in the United States. There are approximately 3,200 local and county jails. Federal prisons confine inmates convicted of offenses that violate the U.S. Constitution. State prisons confine felons convicted of offenses under state jurisdiction. These include, among numerous others, homicide, assault and battery, and burglary. In 2011, the National Gang Intelligence Center estimated that up to 15% of prison inmates are gang members, which include prison gangs, street gangs, and motorcycle gangs. Prison gangs have had a profound effect on the U.S. state and federal prisons. Yet they are hidden behind high walls and razor wire fences. The public’s knowledge of prison gangs’ criminal behavior inside prisons depends on outside investigators’ access to official prison records and opportunities to interview prison staff and prison gang members. To grasp the complexity of conducting prison research necessary to describe accurately prison gangs as a disruptive force in state and federal prisons, this article elucidates social researchers’ difficulties studying prison gangs inside prisons, pressures of social life among prison inmates and how it contributes to gang affiliation, and the TS’s criminal behavior, inside and outside prison. Barriers on Prison Gang Research Social researchers’ opportunities to study prison gangs operating inside prisons have been limited by strict correctional systems’ policies limiting nonemployees’ access. Prisons are law enforcement agencies, which must protect the confidentiality of official records and inmate privacy. Social researchers cannot walk into a police department and request confidential criminal or administrative records. Prison inmates are outside public view and vulnerable to researchers’ abuse and exploitation. Social research inside U.S. prisons requires strict scrutiny of the nature of research; researchers’ proposed methods of data collection; the nature of the data collected, such as inmate and staff interviews or a review of prison records; a description of data analysis procedures; a statement of the ways research results will be disseminated; and assurance that research subjects’ anonymity and confidentiality will be protected. Researchers must pass two levels of strict review. First, researchers must submit a detailed research application to a correctional agency. Upon receipt, the prison research committee […]

Not all gangs are created equal. Although there is no strictly agreed upon definition of what a street gang is, there are certain common characteristics that street gangs possess. There is a group element where the gang serves as a surrogate family for many of the members. There is no such thing as a one-person gang. Symbols are also important to identify who is a member of which gang, and these symbols also create a sense of collective identity. There are nonverbal (e.g., graffiti) and verbal (e.g., code words) forms of communication that let others know who is part of what gang and the location of a certain gang’s turf. Street gangs also maintain an element of permanence, meaning that they stick around for extended periods of time. The most unique feature of street gangs that differentiates them from prison or motorcycle gangs is their street orientation. Although not every street gang claims turf, it is a common phenomenon among street gangs to place importance on defending their turf. Finally, the key feature of gangs that separates them from any other group is their involvement in crime. When gang members are asked what the gang means to them, they highlight the importance of the gang as a family and their involvement in crime. Street gangs are an important feature of the criminal landscape in the United States. These groups are hotbeds for criminal activity. According to the 2012 National Youth Gang Survey, conducted by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, there were an estimated 30,700 gangs, 850,000 gang members, and 2,363 gang-related homicides in the United States. To take a closer look at the peculiarities of these groups, this article follows the career of a typical street gang member, highlighting the general characteristics of gang members, why they join gangs, the gang structure, the types of crime gang members participate in, and the eventual departure from the gang. Gang Members Street gang members are not identical, but there are patterns that arise in age, gender, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and place of residence. Individuals who typically join gangs enter in middle school or the early high school years. The average age of a street gang member is 14–18 years, but there are of course gang members who are much older or younger. The majority of gang members are male, but that is not to say that females are not involved in gangs as well. When it comes to race and ethnicity, those considered to be from the lower rungs of the social ladder are typically those who are joining gangs. This trend can be seen historically. When Italians and Irish were the majority of the immigrants coming to the United States in the 1800s and early 1900s, they were often considered to be on the lower end of the social ladder by U.S. citizens. These were the groups that were forming gangs. Blacks and Hispanics are now often considered the lower rungs of the social ladder, which […]

The Sicilian Mafia is a translocal fraternal organization whose respective local families called cosche (singular, cosca) lay claim to rural communities, urban neighborhoods, and suburbs, primarily in western Sicily. This organization began to coalesce after 1860 when the newly unified Italian state advanced capitalist development. The commoditization of land was especially disruptive, dispossessing peasants of use rights and exacerbating banditry, animal rustling, and the mayhem of regime change. Uprooted men migrated to cities and, after the 1880s, abroad; some joined urban gangs. Amid this turmoil, self-anointed estate guards, rentiers, demobilized soldiers, and fledgling merchants came together in secretive sodalities. Participants presented themselves as vigilantes who, through cultivating a reputation for violence, promised to restore a feudal form of justice. Among other interventions, they shielded landowners and vulnerable enterprises from brigands and gangsters, collecting or extorting a fee (a beak-full or pizzo) for the service. They imposed on employers the requirement that they hire particular clients. Mediating local conflicts, they arranged the return, for a fee, of stolen goods, rustled livestock, and unpaid debts. By the turn of the 20th century, there were almost 200 cosche with memberships ranging from 10 to nearly 50 plus close associates. This article provides an overview of the Sicilian Mafia, examining its basic structure and relationship with the state as well as its current status. Basic Structure The continuity of a cosca over time rests in part on kinship, the status of mafioso being passed from father to son, uncle to nephew. Mafiosi also name each other as godfathers to their children. In (biological) families where the father, uncles, cousins, older brothers, and godfathers are mafiosi, it is almost obligatory for the next generation to consider a criminal career. Kinship, however, is not the sole basis for recruitment nor does genealogical succession guarantee the right kind of talent. Older mafiosi often pass over sons and nephews who seem unsuited, while gathering around them unrelated youth who, as errand boys and show-offs, appear to have the necessary guts. Each cosca elects its own leaders who enforce a set of rules that apply to the Mafia in general (e.g., prohibitions against adultery, kidnapping, and procuring prostitutes). Leaders also negotiate the terms under which it is permissible to commit murder (e.g., state officials were historically off limits) and oversee adherence to omertà, the norm that demands silence before official authorities and commitment to a man of honor identity: real mafiosi possess the courage, valor, and capacity for violence that render them capable of avenging wrongs without resorting to the law. Omertà is further reinforced by the funds each cosca skims from proceeds of the pizzo as these funds are often deployed to pay the lawyers and support the wives and children of members who get arrested and may be pressured to talk. Indeed, only since the 1980s have anti-Mafia prosecutors been able to cultivate justice collaborators (ironically called pentiti by the press). Mafia cosche engage in a common set of cultural practices that contribute to fraternal solidarity and […]

The U.S. Congress enacted the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act of 1970 (RICO) to deal with group crime, including organized crime, white-collar crime, violent groups, terrorism, and street gangs. RICO is the federal prosecutors’ tool of choice to deal with sophisticated forms of crime and an effective mechanism for prosecutors and crime victims to secure comprehensive civil relief. This article considers effective law enforcement for group crime, the elements of RICO, and RICO in use. Effective Law Enforcement Effective law enforcement requires substantive provisions, procedural provisions, administrative organizations, and personnel. Without these, the law will be ineffective in dealing with group crime. Statutes, too, are only one part of a criminal justice system. Without important provisions (e.g., dealing with process, statutes dealing with false testimony, witness protection programs), RICO legislation is not effective. The provisions of most older criminal codes are inadequate to deal with group crime, whether organized crime (e.g., Mafia families or similar groups), white-collar crime (e.g., securities fraud, antitrust violations), violent crime groups (e.g., White hate, anti-Semitic), terrorism, or street gangs. Legislators envision a particular form of crime when they write criminal codes. Traditionally, they envision isolated offenders engaging in isolated criminal offenses. These offenses (e.g., murder, rape, robbery) usually occur on the streets of major metropolitan areas or within family dwellings. Most murders, for example, occur within a family or romantic relationship. They involve a limited number of people and are often crimes of insanity, passion, or behavior affected by the use of alcohol. In comparison, Mafia hits, for example, are done impersonally. Most rapes, however, occur between individuals who have some prior relationship, and rape committed by a stranger is less frequent. Most robberies occur in population centers on the street or in commercial establishments and are repeat offenses. Drafting a criminal code to address these offenses is exactly what traditional statutory drafters know well. Dealing with groups of criminals, however, requires drafting sophisticated laws. Criminal groups present a challenge for law enforcement beyond traditional offenses or offenders. In fact, law enforcement has not been effective using traditional tools in dealing with criminal groups, such as the Mafia. Legislators did not design law enforcement agencies, prosecutor offices, criminal codes, criminal procedures, or rules of evidence with the Mafia in mind. If law enforcement is to successfully curtail such groups, they face formidable hurdles. They must obtain evidence of past offenses, even if witnesses are not available because of fear of retribution. Prosecutors must convict individual persons of specific offenses but must also consider the relationship between individual offenses and a possible group behind it and connect multiple individual offenses. Organized criminal groups commit ongoing offenses; they are also prone to commit cognate offenses. For example, an organized crime group might not only deal with illicit drugs but also commit murder or use other forms of violence to protect the drugs and proceeds and to monopolize the traffic area. Law enforcement must understand the character of a group, the pattern of its offenses, and then […]

Prostitution is broadly defined as the performance of sexual acts for financial remuneration. It is estimated that 40–42 million people engage in prostitution worldwide, though exact numbers are difficult to ascertain because prostitution is largely illegal, involves criminal networks, and is associated with human trafficking. Discourse regarding prostitution has predominantly focused on street prostitution, despite it being the least prevalent form of sex work. Other forms include brothel work, escorting, call boy/girl rolls, massage parlor workers, and gender performers. This does not include managers and pimps (indirect participants in the sex industry) nor customers who pay for sexual services. Although primarily focused on the academic discourse regarding prostitution, this article also discusses risk factors, differences among the various types of prostitution, and future research directions. Discourse Prostitution is situated within a moral, sociopolitical milieu, which affects the legal standpoint of, and interpersonal relationships between, sex workers, law enforcement, and the public. Public opinion of prostitution sits within a broader discourse of gender norms, sexuality, power dynamics, finances, and acceptable sexual behavior. Evolutionary research has shown that this discourse is affected by the value placed on female virginity, which may result from paternity uncertainty. This has resulted in a historical stigmatization of female sexuality and continued stigmatization of sex work. There is also a view that women should not want sex or money unless motivated by nurturing intentions. This may explain why prostitution, involving both, is viewed negatively by the public, irrespective of the laws of the region, particularly when it is indiscreet, as in street prostitution. It may also explain why research often discusses sex work as devaluing women by selling something integral to the self, despite the same language not being used for other work. Like other gender-sensitive areas (e.g., domestic abuse), research on this subject has been dominated by feminist arguments, focusing on patriarchal ideals, conceptualizing prostitution as framed within this unequal gender dynamic, whereby women are dominated, victimized, and controlled by men. Radical feminist arguments regarding prostitution have been criticized because they are not evidence based and are often inconsistent with research. They tend to focus on, and possibly exaggerate the occurrence of, human sex trafficking and other negative aspects of sex work. This may explain why street work receives greater attention, as exploitation and risk are highest in this group. Researchers often recruit former sex workers who consider themselves victims to conduct interviews on their behalf, which can result in leading questions. This practice can encourage bias and fails to take into account multiple types of prostitution, including male, homosexual, or transgender sex workers. Problems within feminist-based explanations of prostitution are evident when, for example, male prostitution is explained using a standardized framework, claiming that male prostitutes exploit usually very wealthy, older female clients. That is not to say exploitation does not occur, only that research should be evidence based, and theories of prostitution must be inclusive of all types of sex work and sex workers. In order to understand the interpersonal dynamics of prostitution, neglected […]

From a historical standpoint, prison gangs first emerged in the 1950s in Washington State. Their purpose was to provide social support among inmates and to provide protection from persecution and abuse by more predatory inmates or groups of inmates. After emergence in Washington, additional and separate prison gangs formed in other states such as California, Illinois, and Texas in the 1960s. In 2011, the National Gang Intelligence Center estimated that 230,000 gang members were incarcerated in federal and state prisons. If the behavior of any inmate group behavior poses a threat within the correctional environment or threatens to disrupt prison control, the group may be labeled as a strategic threat group. This article focuses on prison gangs and strategic threat groups as well as on prison management strategies related to these groups. Prison Gangs For the most part, prison gangs form along racial, cultural, ethnic, religious, political, or geographic lines (i.e., former place of residence). Once a prison gang grows in members and power, the focus of prison gangs shifts from protection and social support to prison gang criminal profits. The prison gangs are profit oriented and become criminal enterprises that regularly conduct criminal activities such as extortion; sale of protection services; debt collection; bootlegging; gambling rackets; and smuggling of tobacco, alcohol, drugs, food, clothes, video games, computer tablets, and cell phones inside prison walls. Definition There is no uniform definition of the term prison gang. Federal and state jurisdictions differ on the number of individuals required for a prison gang, whether the gang formed inside or outside prison walls, the degree and nature of deviant or criminal activities, and whether the group has been validated according to a set of identified prison gang criteria. However, most definitions of what constitutes a prison gang include the following criteria: three or more incarcerated individuals who recurrently commit deviant or criminal activities and the activities of the group responsible for the deviant or criminal act are known. In contrast, the American Correctional Association limits the definition of a prison gang to include only gangs that formed inside prison walls. For example, the Aryan Brotherhood and the Black Guerrilla Family both originated within prison walls and would qualify under the American Correctional Association definition of a prison gang. However, the more restrictive American Correctional Association definition would not include the Bloods, Crips, or Latin Kings since those gangs first emerged as criminal street gangs and later migrated to prison once a sufficient number of the street gang members were incarcerated. However, the distinction of whether the prison gang originated in prison or on the streets is not particularly useful when determining the threat level of a prison gang. Prison gangs that emerged within prison walls and gangs that migrated from the streets are both disruptive and potentially threatening to correctional officials. Both forms of prison gangs, regardless of origin, are powerful prison subcultures that control conduct among select subgroups of prison inmates. Most prison gangs, whether established in prison or on the streets, […]

The United States’ prison system is populated by several prison gangs. Prison gangs are organizations of prisoners that engage in criminal behavior and activities within the prison system complex. Prison gangs often create external extensions of their prison gang into street gangs that engage in criminal activities outside the U.S. penal system as a support apparatus. Generally, a prison gang features characteristics that are shared among several prison gangs. Some of these commonalities are having an organized hierarchical structure or strict rules of conduct established by the gang for members to follow. Another prominent feature of most prison gangs is that they are based on racial lines of exclusion and inclusion. Typically, these prison gangs are established along racial and ethnic lines as prisons are heavily segregated due to racial and social problems that can coalesce and be heightened within a prison system. While there is an abundance of prison gangs in the U.S. prison systems, a selected few stand out as major, being large and particularly important. Ñeta Ñeta is an international Puerto Rican prison and street gang. It was founded in the 1970s by Carlos Torrez Irriarte (also known as La Sombra, or the Shade and Maximum Leader) in Oso Blanco Maximum Security prison (located in Rio Piedras, San Juan, Puerto Rico) to fend off violence between unaffiliated prison members and prison gangs. It has also been called a prisoners’ rights group and inmates’ rights movement by members and has been known to project political ideas about Puerto Rican independence. Ñeta is known to use the Puerto Rican national colors and Puerto Rican apparel to signify membership. In the United States, members predominately reside in the New York/New England area but are spreading to places such as Florida. Ñeta does not have known ties to any other large prison gangs. Law enforcement and departments of corrections have documented criminal illegal activities such as drug activity, violence, extortion, and murder. Ñeta members have also been known to be employed as hit men for other prison and street gangs. Aryan Brotherhood (AB) The AB was formed in the 1960s in San Quentin, a state prison in California. The AB uses strong White nationalist and neo-Nazi symbols to illustrate membership. For instance, they employ the use of swastikas, SS lightning bolts, and also 666. They also employ the use of Celtic or Irish cultural symbols. The AB requires a blood in, blood out oath from members, which stipulates that an initiate must kill or assault someone to enter the gang and can exit the gang only through death. The AB is considered the oldest White supremacist prison gang in the United States and has chapters throughout the United States. It is primarily focused on criminal economic activities that are comparable to American organized crime. The AB has been involved in drug trafficking, extortion, murder, and murder for hire. It also has a standing alliance with the Mexican Mafia and a strong rivalry with the Black Guerrilla Family. Black Guerrilla Family The […]

Many authors have explained the concept of organized crime through various characteristics. After reviewing how organized crime became established in the United States, this article describes the similarities and differences between two general types of organized crime groups in the United States: traditional Sicilian organized crime groups (referred to as “The Mafia” or La Cosa Nostra) and newly emerging groups. The entry concludes with remarks about the projected futures of these general types of organized crime groups operating in the United States. Establishment of Organized Crime in the United States To many people, the term organized crime conjures an image fostered by Hollywood as a gang of Italian mobsters dealing in the illegal alcohol of Prohibition, prostitution, gambling, and drugs. While the Sicilian gangs may have been the l argest, most prominent, and well-structured ethnically based gangs in the history of U.S. organized crime, they were not the only gangs established on culture and nationality to enter the underworld nor were they even the first. Irish, German, and Jewish gangs had already left their marks when the Volstead Act (the National Prohibition Act) was passed in 1919 to enforce the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which banned the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcohol, providing a new illegal product for gangs to serve to the buying public. As World War II and the Cold War ended, U.S. society became more diverse with new ethnic groups from the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia as well as countries of Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa arriving in the pursuit of the American Dream. Their reasons for immigrating to the United States were many and included a desire to escape the ravages of war and its aftermath, to escape various forms of religious and political oppression and persecution, to escape the limits of opportunity associated with the more caste-like societies of their homelands, and to partake of the American Dream of upward mobility through the fruits of their own independence and hard work. However, a very small percentage of the members of these groups chose to follow the model built by the traditional Sicilian mobsters who had arrived in the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century seeking their fortunes in less conventional methods. The usual pattern featured the small criminal element perpetrating extortion on fellow immigrants. This extortion was usually rationalized as protection. In many instances, the new immigrants did not know the language or customs of their new country and did not go to the police because they often came from lands where law enforcement agents were feared and not to be trusted. In short, they assumed that the illegal acts of a very small number were to be dismissed as business as usual. Once these gangs became established and organized, they were free to expand into other illegal activities as the criminal market would dictate. Characteristics of Organized Crime Groups This section explores the characteristics that authors have used to describe organized crime […]