There is a misconception that wealthy cities do not have the same types of crimes as lower or middle-class areas. Society believes that the affluent residents can deter crime with their highly patrolled areas and their advanced security systems to keep them safe from criminals and drug addicts that may be wandering on the street. In addition, society believes that the upper class’ wealth deters them from committing crimes. They see that there is no reason for them to commit a crime with all the money they have because they can just buy whatever they desire. Although in some aspects it may be true, some cannot help the thrill and excitement that comes with the package of committing crimes. Others get involved in crimes because of social or …show more content…
Later that… year … [a second] beating of victim… at a party [happened and]… attackers threatened to kill witnesses if they told police. Additionally, reports circulated… of an attack on a couple walking along the beach” (Ludeke, p.2) Although MLO members became notoriously known for their assaults, their actions that described them as an established gang were immediately disregarded by law enforcement and the community. The city of Malibu believed that if they just ignore MLO eventually they would go away. In 1988 the Step Act was enacted, it helped distinguish which groups and actions are considered to be gang related. Ludeke argued that MLO should be regarded as a gang because they have completed each criteria in the Step Act that constitutes them as a street gang.
“The Step Act defines a criminal street gang as: [A]ny ongoing organization, association, or group of three or more persons . . . having as one of its primary activities the commission of one or more of the criminal acts enumerated in paragraphs (1) to (25), inclusive, or (31) to (33), inclusive, of subdivision (e), having a common name or common identifying sign or symbol, and whose members individually or collectively engage in or have engaged in a pattern of criminal gang activity.” (Ludeke, p.4)
Ludeke has proven that MLO is a street gang by identifying that they have a common name and are
“Gangs have morphed from social organizations into full-fledged criminal enterprises” (Thomas, 2009, para 5). Gangs are highly sophisticated and more dangerous then ever. The number one reason to join a gang is money; and 95 percent of gangs profit comes from drug dealing
In Rodriguez’s Always Running he explores the themes of gang violence as he was involved with many gang members and was in one as well. It also had discrimination as a theme in the book because many Mexicans and Hispanic didn’t have the same education as the wealthy and financial people, for example, the whites and first class. “Lomas was reorganizing and recruiting. No longer could one claim Lomas just by being there, Chicharrón invited me to get in,” (108) said Luis. “They beat on you for about three minutes-- that’s all,” told Chicharron to Luis. (108) Luis is saying that the Lomas gang has something in hand for you in order to officially be part of the gang. The requirement to enter the gang is for
In the movie “Mystic River”, directed by Clint Eastwood it focuses on three boys that grew up in the streets of Boston. The urban environment that they grew up in as children directly impacted their lives, as they got older. One big universal theme of the movies was urban crime; the movie displayed both sides of urban crime (the corrupt side as well as the investigators and law enforcement, also known as the “good side”). All of the urban crimes shown throughout this movie relate to the way the boys lives played out. Within their urban neighborhood there existed such a closed social community that it is hard to believe that Jimmy Markum, Sean Devine and Dave Boyle came to grow apart at all, but the urban crime that was such a big part of
Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMCGs) is a contemporary issue that engulfs Australian society. What makes prosecution of such gangs so complex is the strong foothold that gangs have in organised crime and the façade that is worn in order to evade the eyes of the law. Various responses have been implemented in order to cease all violence and more importantly disenfranchise organised crime and prosecute those within the illegal syndicates. Legal responses put into act are: task forces and intelligence and lastly, targeting the organisation and membership. The non-legal responses on the other hand are, the media and the formation of political parties.
In New South Wales, the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Gangs) Act 2006. These 2006 provisions make it an offence to participate in a criminal group, defined as three or more people who have objectives to obtain material benefits from serious indictable offences or commit serious violence.
When most people think of the word status, they think of where it places them in society. If you have a higher status you might be considered a more important human being. If you have a lower status you might be considered “poor” or “in poverty”. But what does it mean to have a status as a gang? That questions certainly can’t be answered by me correctly, however I would imagine in a world of gangs having the highest status would make you the most feared gang. If you are going to join a gang, it might as well be one worth joining such as MS 13. If MS 13 is recognized worldwide as the most “dangerous” gang then they probably are! Having a status like that on the streets would make other gangs stay away from you, as well as make people afraid to tell you no or show you consequences. In the video we watched as a class police enforcement coming up short every time when they would “bust” them for drugs or something else. It made me wonder if the police really were being out smarted or if they didn’t want to dig too deep into an unfamiliar territory. Even though MS 13 is recognized as the world’s most dangerous gang, everyone seems to know little information about them. It is still unknown whether not
Not only does Ludeke touch on the subject of what causes youths to join gangs, but addresses a disparity issue of how MLO is not labeled as a criminal street gang by law enforcement (Rose & Clear, 1998, pg.443). It is important to realize that because Malibu Locals Only obtains a set of different characteristics, ultimately it influences how the group is categorized (Ludeke, 2007). Yet, other gangs composed of the stereotypical group that perform similar offenses are instantaneously labeled as criminal’s/gang members. If a group meets the criteria under the STEP act to establish it as a criminal street gang, law enforcement officials must apply the same standard to all groups justifiably (Ludeke, 2007).
Alleyne, Emma & Wood, Jane L., (2011). Gang Involvement: Social and Environment Factors. Crime and Delinquency 60 (4) 547-568.
Gangs are centered on a certain territory or turf that is claimed by that gang. When rival gangs enter that
In our society there is many different types of crimes, I will be focusing specifically on street crime and white-collared crime. Each of these criminal communities has criminals that in the end are just trying to reach a goal. Whether it is the American dream of living in luxury or just trying to make ends meet. “White collared” crime is defined as a nonviolent criminal act that is motivated by financial gain. Then there is “street crime” which is defined as a criminal offense that is committed in a public place. Some examples of white-collar crimes are: embezzlement, corporate price-fixing, fraud, bribery, forgery, money laundering, cybercrime, copyright infringement, etc. While some examples of street crime are: robbing, murder, rape, sale of illegal drugs, assault, auto theft, etc.
Gang crime is one of the most intriguing social phenomena’s across the world, as defining the deviancy has been difficult due to a broad range of definitions (Wood & Alleyne, 2010, pg. 101). One definition is given by David Curry and
White-collar crimes are just as prevalent today as ordinary street crimes. Studies show that criminal acts committed by white-collar criminals continue to increase due to unforeseen opportunities presented in the corporate world, but these crimes are often overlooked or minimally publicized in reference to criminal acts on the street. Many street crimes are viewed as unnecessary, horrendous crimes because they are committed by lower class citizens, whereas white collar crimes are illegal acts committed by seemingly respectable people whose occupational roles are considered successful and often admired by many (Piquero, 2014). These views often allow white collar crimes to “slip through the cracks” and carry lesser charges or punishment.
According to the FBI data on violent crime in 2013 shows that there has been a decrease of 4.4 percent in the level of crime over the years ("FBI — Violent Crime," 2010). Since the public has based their assumption that the socioeconomic can determine the level of crime one can commit at a given time. Basically, there is close gap between the socioeconomic and the level of crime one commit, and again, crime varies across geographical
A pervasive theme in sociology and criminology has always been that law violation is linked to the individual’s position in the social structure. (Tittle, 1983) Poverty and crime have had a long-term relationship because of the perception and stereotyping of poor people and the crime. The society is classified into three social classes; the high, the middle, and the low class. The high class is for the rich
Classification approaches towards gangs are generally carried out according to the structure of the gang, their respective membership, and even on the basis of their ethnicity. Pyrooz & Decker, (2011) have identified three forms of gangs which are named as; street gangs, outlaw motorcycle gangs and prison gangs. In this method of classification, local street gangs are termed as the ones which occur most frequently at the community level. These are the forms of gangs which engage in drug related crimes and violence.