Organized Crime Essay

Criminal groups exist everywhere. However what defines each organized crime group depends upon what ultimate goal each group looks to achieve. In New York City, there has been organized crime in existence since the 1900’s. Although changing names, and rulers throughout the years, this group has always been known as the mafia. Predominantly, it has been known as the Italian mafia. Italian mafia just like it’s counterparts in the Irish and Jewish mafia underwent structural, social, and physical changes in order for it to reach its current status. Many people believe it has existed as long as it has due to the ingenious

According to Rachel Boba, “Crime analysis is a law enforcement function that involves systematic analysis for identifying and analyzing patterns and trends in crime and disorder” (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime analysis).The information on these patterns can assist law enforcement agencies in the deployment of resources in a more effective manner; it can also help detectives to identify and catch suspects. Crime analysis also plays a role in improvising solutions to crime problems, and developing crime prevention strategies. There are various types of technology that is used in crime analysis. Crime analysis relies heavily on computer technology, and over the past fifteen years there has been a significant improvement in computer hardware and

“It was during the troubled years of the 1860s that the Italian kingdom’s ruling class ruling class first heard talk of the mafia in Siciliy” (Dickie, s38, 2004). In this quote we find a potential reason to why the idea that the mafia was born during the making of the modern Italian state has become leading with scholars. Most likely this event shaped the mafia into what it has become because of the political influence that the Italian state bestowed upon Sicily. However, it is not unlikely that the mafia wasn’t already existing in Sicily during this time, and most definitely that criminal gangs of Sicily before this time had traits that were transferred into the mafia as it evolved under the new Italian kingdom. While the mafia is largely

Organized crime in the United States keeps the FBI and other law enforcement agencies in a never-ending investigation of criminals suspected of the infiltration of legitimate businesses. A notorious twentieth century organized group was the New England Patriarca Mafia, or N.E.P.M.. Originating in 1915, the N.E.P.M. evolved over the early twentieth century decades, until 1954 when Raymond Loredo Salvatore Patriarca was donned as boss* and promptly began to expand its power. Due to mafia-related language that will be present throughout the paper, a page of definitions is supplied at the end of the paper. Defined words throughout the paper will be noted with an asterisk, “ * ”.

In some communities organized crime is as much of a social institution as other legitimate functions. Often, the impact of organized crime can be hidden and not readily apparent to community members. In other cases the community may come to accept the organized criminal group for the benefits they provide. Understanding how organized crime meshes into the social fabric of a community is important to understanding how to fight against it. Just as important to understanding the social implications is understanding theories as to why individuals become involved in criminal activities and how criminal organizations function.

Organized crime groups have broadened their reach to other potential candidates, therefore staying ahead of law enforcement. They have embraced sophisticated arranged structural models, internationalized their operations, and developed more technologically savvy tactics. There is another alternate explanation for the invaluable position that is presently being appreciated by the structured crime organizations in the United States

There are few adults in this country who have not heard of the terms “Mafia”, the “Mob”, or “Organized Crime”. Hence, there are probably as many opinions of what these terms mean as there are people who know them. Over the years, my perceptions about organized crime came mainly through Hollywood productions or news accounts of criminal activity. Overall, I have had a disapproving opinion of organized crime. I would say that for the most part my perceptions prior to enrollment in this class have been verified by the realities presented in the text, other readings, and videos. However, there are of course significant disparities between my knowledge and the actual facts of the groups.

Social Institutions are groups of people who have come together for a common purpose. These institutions have formed a common bond. They have done research and have concluded by joining they can achieve more. Some of the social institutions in the local community are the Boys and Girls Clubs, the Cub Scouts, the Girl Scouts. There are generally five different types of social institutions. They are political, educational, religious, economic, and family. Each is filled with members of a common goal. Organized crime organizations have adopted the philosophy of social institutions. They

In this paper the exciting criminal phenomenon known as white-collar crime will be discussed. Corporate Crime and Computer Crime will be discussed in detail. Crime preventative agencies such as the NCPC (National Crime Prevention Council) will also be researched. White Collar Crime The late Professor Edwin Sutherland coined the term white-collar crime about 1941. Sutherland defined white-collar crime as "a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation" (Siegel 337) White-collar crime includes, by way of example, such acts as promulgating false or misleading advertising, illegal exploitation of employees, mislabeling of goods, violation of weights and measures statutes, conspiring to

Transnational crime is a growing problem. Transnational crime is defined as “self-perpetuating associations of individuals who operate transnational for the purpose of obtaining power, influence, monetary and/or commercial gains, wholly or in part by illegal means, while protecting their activities through a pattern of corruption and/ or violence, or while protecting their illegal activities through a transnational structure and the exploitation of transnational commerce or communication mechanisms.” (National Security Council, n.d.) . Transnational crimes are known under other names such as cross-national crime, global crime, international crime, and

Smuggling is the transfer of illegal substances, and or unauthorized goods across borders by either the receiving or sending country (Andreas, 2009). Moreover, what is smuggled can consist of numerous items such illegal narcotics’ such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and other illicit drugs. However, legal prescription drugs are smuggled on a frequent basis into the United States as well. Due to the low cost, many Americans find low cost pharmaceuticals smuggled across the border from Mexico an attractive alternative to the expensive pharmaceuticals sold in in the United States.

1) So called “white collar” or “occupational” crime seems to be receiving more attention than ever these days, which is more of an indictment of its lax enforcement historically than of any indication of a truly reformed modern stance. What is meant is that this particular type of crime is so engrained into our culture that the famed Sociologist Edwin Sutherland estimates that fully 90% of our top seventy companies are “habitually criminal” in their actions (Schmalleger 404). Yet only recently has there been thought to the effect that these types of crime do serious harm to our society and should be punished accordingly. “White collar” crime is an umbrella label that can span the types of crimes committed by a large corporation against the public, like price fixing, anti-trust violations, defrauding of the public (Enron would be a good example of this), and other actions in violation of regulatory controls. The term can also be applied to more individual type crimes including embezzlement, insider trading, cronyism (the idea of sweetheart contracts (Lecture Notes 4/9)), as well as tax evasion.

Before the twentieth century, explaining crime followed Darwin, and Lumbroso’s idea that criminals were biologically inferior. But with the development of the industry and the urbanization of the late 1800s and 1900s, the Progressive movement arose, arguing that crime was a social product. It was not the individual and its biologically inferior traits that would cause him to commit crime, it is rather the environment that causes people to commit crime. That was the beginning of the Chicago School. Because Chicago witnessed a rapid social change due to industrialization and the sudden urbanization and mass population shift, it became the prime choice to study how social change impacted criminal conduct. Researchers at the University of Chicago believed that crime would be best understood by looking at neighborhood characteristics. Shaw and McKay (1929) were influenced by the Chicago School in that they asked the question “does it make a difference if a child grows up in an inner-city community affected by ethnic heterogeneity, poverty, and social mobility?” The question led to shifting the focus of what causes crime from an individual perspective to a social, environmental perspective. Thus, when studying delinquency and crime, Shaw and McKay (1929) and Burgess (1967) argued that neighborhoods may be the contributing factors to crime and not the individual.

Vian pulled up to a house with blue and red lights flashing and curious neighbors trying to get a good look at the situation. He quickly exited his car, ducking under police tape and getting closer to the scene. It was in a small white house, blood splattered across the windows from the inside. This was going to be a messy one. He threw on some plastic gloves before heading inside. The scene was gruesome. Sticky dark blood everywhere, chunks of god knows what on the ground next to the victim. It was a girl. She obviously put up a fight. There were dark purple bruises around her neck and arms. It wasn’t enough to take his attention away from the huge gash starting from the bottom of her neck to her belly button. Gutted like a fish. Her

Crime — what is crime? Crime is an act, which is evil and is punishable by law — such as stealing, cheating and murder for personal benefit. From time immemorial, such acts have been done by people but, they were usually done by the poor, depressed just to enable them to make their ends meet. However, today the scenario of crime has also changed like every other. Originally, the traditional occupation of the poor, has now become the occupation of the community of people already flourishing in other businesses. The world of crime has been now taken over by the so- called elite, the white collared gentry of the society. In this modern world of advancement and education, the one time prerogative of the poor is being