NCJ Number
101273
Editor(s)
R J Kelly
Date Published
1986
Length
300 pages
Annotation
Thirteen essays examine the formations, structures, activities, methods, and social interactions of diverse criminal organizations in various countries and regions throughout the world.
Abstract
The countries and regions addressed are the United States, Japan, Israel, Great Britain, Canada, Africa, Poland, Italy, the Caribbean, and Australia. The essays discuss how various social, economic, and political conditions in the societies examined create profitable criminal opportunities that are exploited by well-organized groups whose leadership coordinates the skills of members. The sizes, structures, and functions of the groups are discussed, and their continuity in the face of official efforts to counter them is explored. This includes analyses of political alliances, political corruption, and the prevalent use of repressive violence by criminal organizations. An overview essay notes that until economic and social improvements are engineered to connect most groups to normative community life and legitimate economic structures, organized crime will persist in spite of every law enforcement effort. Chapter references, notes, and name and subject indexes. For individual essays, see NCJ 101274-101285.