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Running head: MODULE 1 HOMEWORK

Module 1 Homework Assignment

Andrew Uhlenkamp
Allied American University

Author Note
This paper was prepared for CRJ 455: Investigation of Organized Crime, Module 1
Homework Assignment taught by John Dauser.

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PART I
Directions: As a criminal justice student, you are seeking to become a criminal justice
professional. In order for professionals to be great at their jobs, they must have a good working
knowledge of all the theories surrounding their profession. An understanding of the theories will
help the professional put together the pieces, especially when working on a large scale organized
crime case. These types of cases are not easy to solve and can cause a lot of problems in the
community. Thus, they must be stopped before it gets out of hand. You are a criminologist that
has been hired by a local law enforcement agency to prepare a report that will help their officers
understand the various definitions and theories of organized crime.
Research using your textbook, the AAU Library, and the Internet and prepare a paper defining
organized crime and explaining the theories. Also, locate an example of a crime that would
match each theory for those listed in the questions below. Be sure to provide your resources via
in text citations and a reference page in APA format. Be sure to address the items below in your
report:

What are the various definitions of organized crime?

What are the various theories that have been developed to explain the structure of
organized crime groups?
What is the criminal choice theory?
What are social disorganization theories of crime?
What is the enterprise theory of organized crime?
What is the organizational theory of organized crime?
How does deterrence theory affect crime and personal decisions to commit crime?
What are some other theories of crime?

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Organized crime comes with a number of various definitions. The Presidents

Commission on Organized Crime (1986) describes it as a society made up of thousands of
criminals, working within a structured hierarchy similar to any corporation, subject to their
own internal laws. This society is comprised of individuals seeking to operate outside the
control of the governments laws and regulations. Unlike many criminals, those engaged in
organized crime do not conduct their unlawful actions on impulse, but rather based on
instructions and planning handed down from their superiors. These actions are almost
always small moves planned over many years conducted with the primary goal of gaining
control over entire enterprises- mostly the illegal supply of good, services, and contrabandin order to gain huge profits.
The FBI (2010) has a slightly different variation on their definition of organized crime.
They state that organized crime is any group having some manner of a formalized structure
and whose primary objective is to obtain money through illegal activities. They go on to
describe that these groups protect and enforce their position through violence or the threat
of violence, as well as bribing corrupt officials, utilizing extortion, and otherwise generally
maintaining a position of control on the people in their area of operation.
The IRS refers to organized crime as an association of people or groups working
together in a self-perpetuating, structured organization (Lyman & Potter, 2011). The
purpose of their cooperation is to attain money through wholly or partially illegal means.
They utilize a pattern of corruption, violence, and deception to protect their activities and
make them appear legitimate.
Finally, the Omnibus Safe Street Control Act of 1968 (FBI, 2010) describes organized
crime as the unlawful activities of the members of a highly organized, disciplined
association engaged in supplying illegal goods and services, including but not limited to

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gambling, prostitution, loan sharking, narcotics, labor racketeering, and other unlawful
activities of members of such organizations.
These descriptions are all relatively similar in that they describe organized crime as a
structured organization of criminals working together illegally to earn money through the
use of violence and corruption to protect their enterprise. They are put together in a
hierarchical structure, similar to hierarchies used in corporations and militaries. Their
bottom-level foot soldiers do most of the actual work, with the organizations leadership
working together to plan operations for the purpose of expanding the control and span of
their network. Often times these organizations vary between contending and cooperating
with each other, with the relationship changing from time-to-time based on shifts in
leadership and what each organization might deem best. The entire system shares
similarities with legitimate political organizations, except that more crime syndicates are
more willing to utilize violence and other corrupt or unethical means to attain their goals.
A variety of theories have been developed to explain various aspects of criminal
organization. Criminal choice, social disorganization, enterprise, and organizational theories
all offer their own interpretations behind the origins, nature, and reasons for organized
crime.
Social disorganization theories serve to explain organized crime through the
parameters of social dysfunction. Economic strife, a history of criminal activity, broken
homes, and a heavy local criminal presence are all social factors that can contribute to
organized crime. Relative deprivation is a theory that states that the drastic inequality
between rich and poor communities might foster resentment and anger. These negative
feelings, in combination with a desire to attain material wealth may be enough to drive
those in low-income communities to turn to organized crime in order to gain wealth from
those of wealthier status.

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Other theories of social disorganization include differential opportunity. Many male

adolescents in lower class environments may feel a sense of hopelessness and desperation.
Out of this desperation, they may feel that the only way for them to get out of their hole is
through criminal behavior. When there is organized crime in their community, they can see
participation in that crime as a way to move up on the socioeconomic ladder.
Enterprise theory is an interesting take on the reasoning of criminal organization. In
1980, Smith suggested that criminal organization may sprout up in an effort to fill gaps in
both illegitimate and legitimate markets. If there is more demand for a product than there is
supply, criminal organizations may provide that supply through unlawful means in order to
make a profit. This market can be anything from bootleg copies of movies or television
shows, to illegal drug or firearm sales.
The organizational theory of organized crime describes criminal organizations as very
fluid and adaptive, shifting and changing to fill-in gaps in the market and exploit what they
feel they can readily take advantage of to make the most profit. This theory states that
where there is a need or a desire for a product or service, especially the illicit kind, criminal
organizations can move in to provide that product or service. This theory is similar to
enterprise theory, except that it also takes into account the organizational aspect of groups
involved, and the ability of a crime syndicate to operate with fluidity and flexibility.
When seeking to prevent crime, lawmakers have sometimes subscribed to a theory
that they believe may help prevent crime. General deterrence theory suggests that if the
punishment for a crime is severe enough, it will cause criminals to at least think twice
before breaking the law. Specific deterrence theory works on the idea that if a subject is
caught and sentenced, the punishment will be so detrimental that it will scare them badly
enough to prevent them from ever committing the same crime again. While deterrence
theory lacks empirical evidence to prove its effectiveness, some supporters point to the

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small minority of criminals among society, stating that the main reason the rest of society
obeys the law is out of respect for the punishments that come along with it.

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References1.

Presidents Commission on Organized Crime. 1986. Washington, DC. Government

Printing Office.

2.

Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). 2010. Leader of Chinese Organized Crime

Group Sentenced in Manhattan in Federal Court. Department of Justice Press
Release. Taken from: http://newyork.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel10/
nyfo021610.htm.

3.

Lyman, M. D. & Potter, G. W. 2011. Organized Crime fifth edition. Pearson Education
LTD.

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PART II

Directions: Use the Internet, your textbook, and the AAU Library to research the following
questions. Write a two (2)-page paper answering the following questions:

What are some effective measures that can be utilized to control organized crime?

How do organizational constraints affect organized crime groups?

How have official investigations into organized crime contributed to an understanding of

the Mafia and other groups?

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Organized crime has been a problem for the last century in every corner of the globe.
Efforts to combat it have been difficult, as the appeal of organized crime is very enticing to
those it targets. The lure of money, status, and power is incredibly appealing, especially
when it is coupled with the protection afforded to the members of an organized crime
syndicate. This is especially true in developing nations, where a poor economy breeds
economic imbalance and crime among the lower class (Buscaglia & van Dijk, 2003). With
wealth being hard to come by, it becomes easier to manipulate politicians and citizens to do
the bidding of an organization willing to reward its compatriots with their ill-gotten gains
and kill anyone who refuses to give in to their demands.
Organized crime becomes a more fragile enemy with specific caveats set in place to
combat it. As stated previously, low socioeconomic status, especially in developing nations,
is often a driving reason to enter a life of organized crime. Public officials in poor countries
are more easily won over with money than those in developed nations. As such, developing
a nations infrastructure with specific fail safes in place to protect against corrupt politicians
and hold them accountable for their dishonesty and betrayal is a good first step toward
fighting off organized crime.
Establishing legislature specific to organized crime is another method that works to
fight organized crime groups. RICO (Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations) laws
are specifically designed to target organized crime. Laws such as this and other laws that
target conspiracy crimes make it easier to prosecute and successfully convict those involved
in criminal organizations.
Finally, one of the most effective ways to combat organized crime is a task force. Law
enforcement organizations can put together a group of officers with training and experience
in dealing with organized crime. A specific anti-mafia task force with the specific mission of

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investigating and dismantling criminal organizations is particularly effective in conjunction

with legislative measures.
Criminal organizations are subject to many of the same economic constraints as
legitimate businesses (Reuters, 1983). These criminal organizations exist to make a profit.
In order to do that, they need to be able to read their market and provide the appropriate
product or service with the right price. They need to ensure that they havent come in to a
market that is already saturated. They also need to be weary of how quickly they choose to
expand their enterprise. Growing too quickly can expose the organization, but not
expanding fast enough might mean failing to capitalize on opportunity when it knocks. In
addition, organizations need to weight the risks of being exposed against the rewards of
operating their illegal market and the tactics they use.
Organizational constraints also exist within organized crime. Groups need to take into
account the amount of control that their leadership has over their bottom tier of criminals.
They need to ensure that the hierarchical break down is sufficient in that the groups
lieutenants are capable of properly managing the foot soldiers beneath them. Maintaining
the balance of numbers and control forces them to carefully keep their ranks in check.
Since the early 1920s, Italian immigrants who were forced out of their homes of
Sicily were building the roots of the American-Italian Mafia. When the Fascist Italian dictator,
Benito Mussolini, tried to purge his country of the mafia, he did so with an iron fist. His
heavy-handed tactics were so fierce, that they eventually drove many Sicilians to the United
States to pursue a life without persecution. (Lyman & Potter, 2011) Once they arrived in the
states, however, it was only a matter of time before the mafia began to reform, as it did
once again in Italy after the fall of Mussolini.
The prohibition era provided a natural niche for the Italian crime organizations to fill,
as bootleg alcohol became a popular vice among those across socioeconomic statuses. As

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more immigrants came to the United States, they actually began to form smaller street
gangs in the poor neighborhoods they grew up in. Often times more for protection from
other gangs rather than in an effort to form a criminal empire. Before long, organized crime
of all kinds were sprouting up all over the nation.

References1.

Buscaglia, Edgardo & van Dijk, Jan. 2003. Controlling Organized Crime and
Corruption in the Public Sector. Forum on Crime and Society, Volume 3,
Numbers 1 and 2. Taken from: http://www.unodc.org/pdf/crime/forum/
forum3_Art1.pdf

2.

Reuter, P. 1983. Disorganized Crime: The Economics of the Visible Hand. Cambridge,
MA. MIT Press.

3.

Lyman, MD. & Potter, GW. 2011. Organized Crime, fifth edition. Pearson Education
LTD.