The statute uses very broad definitions to cover many types of criminal activity. It allows for the government to go after organized families like the Mob, while also covering anyone who uses a business or enterprise to commit any racketeering acts. Since the passing of the RICO act in October of 1970, many states have decided to implement similar statutes to fight organized crime. Some notables states include New York, California, Colorado, and Washington.
Many people over the years have argued that RICO act has now been abused passed its original purpose of eliminating crime organizations. It now has allowed for nonviolent criminals that are faced with long prison terms. Many lawyers have realized since 1970 the major money making
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The government has since used the RICO act for its intended purposes over the years. The original intent was to bring down members of criminal organizations such as the mafia. It allowed the prosecution to connect incidents to the bosses or leaders behind the original crimes. Throughout our research we went back to how the RICO act came to be and the definitions of some key terminology of the act. The government has been successful in many famous cases over the years by benefiting from the RICO act. The RICO act has also led to some failures and confusion both in civil cases and in prosecution cases. The Hell’s Angels is a great example of the jury not understanding the terminology of an organized crime enterprise. The jury was unable to determine whether or not the prosecution was finding the bikers guilty or the Hell’s Angels enterprise guilty leading to a hung jury. Since, the original act has passed its original purpose the government and civil cases have abused the RICO act beyond it’s intended purposes. What was once a tool in law to aid in the dismantling of criminal organizations has now become an intimidating force which could prevent growth in an industry for fear of the massive fines. Through our research on the subject of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act we have found the good, the bad, and the grey area. RICO has served its purpose, but like with any good intentioned act it can be mistreated over
This “business” aspect of organized crime is what the movie industry has latched on to in the Gangster genre. In Scarface, Tony Camonte is in the business of selling beer to the town watering holes. Of course, he doesn’t so much sell the beer as force it on the bar owners at jacked up prices. And just like any other business, there is competition for dominance in the market. And for this dominance, or rather monopoly, ringleaders do not think twice about taking their competition out – not by buying them out or forcing them into bankruptcy, but by sending a squad out to murder them.
Over the past 60 years there has been a recent phenomenon in the development and rise of gangs and gang violence. This is exceptionally apparent in South Central Los Angeles where the Bloods and the Crips have taken control of the social structure and created a new type of counter culture. Poverty in this area is an enormous problem caused by a shear lack of jobs; but just because there is a lack of jobs doesn’t mean that there will be a lack of bills to pay, so sometimes selling drugs in order to keep a roof over your head seems like the most logical option. Crime often times flourishes in these regions because the inconvenient truth is; crime pays. Senator Tom Hayden stated “It’s been defined as a crime problem and a gang problem but it’s really an issue of no work and dysfunctional schools.” this statement is in fact true, but with an exception it is a more broad issue than just involving school, and lack of jobs but goes beyond into social structure as a whole and more specifically the judicial system, this can all be supported by three sociologists Chambliss, Anderson, and Durkheim.
The gangsters we know and love today are much different from what they were 40 years ago. From the way they talked, dressed, and went about their business, the idea of a gangster has changed a lot. But they have one thing in common and this is the fact that they both had and have a huge impact on our society. One gangster in particular, Henry Hill, contributed to a huge turning point in the methods of American criminals. Henry Hill’s accomplishments as a mobster and an FBI informant helped change the ways of organized crime and how the government tried to stop them.
Organized crime has developed a stigma regarding its power and influence, especially during its hay day in the 1930’s. The mob has always been viewed as a powerful “family-like” organization. In Scarface, Hawkes brings the mafia into a seemingly more realistic light. By overturning Lovo’s position of power, Tony represents the idea of “every man for himself,” within a supposed organized group. The viewer steps into a cut-throat world of power hungry men, all trying to get rich quick. In this world, Hawkes asks, how can you organize men towards any goal if they all seek personal gain?
A gang is an organized group with a recognized leader whose activities are either criminal or, at the very least, threatening to the community. (Walker, 2011) Throughout history there have been some infamous gangs that have gotten media attention and others that have gone under the radar. One of the more underground gang structures are prison gangs. The Nuestra Familia may not be in the news as much anymore compared to other gangs, but they are nothing to be taken lightly. Prison gangs have been around since the late 20th century and only seem to be getting stronger if nothing is going to be done to prevent them. Gangs in prison have members in and out of prison. One of the more popular gangs that has been gaining steam recently is the mainly Hispanic gang La Nuestra Familia. The purpose of this paper is to write about the history of the NF, the structure in which it operates, and some good preventative tactics that could prevent prison gangs from becoming stronger.
...duction of Crime." Texas Review of Law & Politics 8.1 (2003): 175-87. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 15 June 2015.
Criminal activities and gangs have mostly always been an on going problem in the United States. Gangs and gang members are frequently involved with a variety of different crimes. The 2008 National Youth Gang Survey reported that there are approximately 774,000 active gang members in the United States (Egley, Howell, & Moore, 2010). The 2008 National Youth Gang Survey also states that there are about 27,900 active gangs in the United States (Egley et al., 2010). The active gangs in California have caused a major impact on the state in many ways. According to the California Department of Justice, approximately 300,000 gang members are living in California (Crawford, 2009). California also attributes more than 25 percent of all homicides to gang activity (Crawford, 2009). This is a staggering huge amount. The rise of gang involvement and gang crime has led law enforcement to issue and enforce gang injunctions. However, these gang injunctions do not completely eliminate gang crime and they have no effect after one year of being issued. Also, gang injunctions interfere with the lives of normal people in society.
The Major Crimes Act was an important piece of legislation regarding the jurisdiction of Indian tribes on U.S. soil, and was passed on March 3, 1885. It was one of the concluding sections of the Indian Appropriations Act of 1885, which sought to deal with Indian American relations of the latter-19th century. The Major Crimes Act law was passed by Congress, following the General Crimes Act of 1817. The Major Crimes Act expanded on the General Crimes Act by detailing what could constitute as a crime under the federal jurisdiction of the United States if they were to be committed by a Native American in a Native American territory. It also added the caveat that crimes committed between two Native Americans would also count under federal jurisdiction
In 1988, the California legislature enacted California Penal Code section 186.22, part of the Street Terrorism and Prevention Act.( Ludeke, 2007, 12). The Steep Act provides the criteria that group must meet to constitute a gang and fall under its purview. The Act requires a group of people with a common insignia or identifier that associates with the purpose of committing predicate acts set as forth in that statute. (Ludeke,2007,12). Majority of States clarifies that a gang should consist of at least three individuals, can have either a formal or informal organizational structure, and include members who have engaged in a pattern of criminal activity (Bjerregaard, 2003, 173). Under the STEP Act , gang membership is punishable up to three years(Anderson, 2013, slide 15). The sentence enhancement is 2,3, or 4 years for a felony, 5 for a serious felony and 10 years for a violent felony(Rios & Navarro,2010,22). By the year 2000, California voters passed Proposition 21, an initiative that extended the grip of STEP’s gang enhancement by applying it to juveniles and increasing gang-related crime sentences(Rios & Navarro, 2010,22).
John Adams Wanted to sign a law into the government that was called the Alien and Sedition Acts. These acts gave the government the right to jail people for speaking against the government, or talking negatively about the United States. Along with being an immigrant from a country that supported terrorism. So if you were an immigrant who came from a terrorist approving county, the government will have the right to jail you even if you did nothing to harm or disobey the country’s laws and rights.This can only happen if the Alien and Sedition Acts were approved.
During 1869-2014 the Sicilian mafia in America evolved in a number of ways such as: the change in rules, leaders, how it is run, the change in code and power over American society. These topics will be covered throughout this essay and will give you a detailed explanation furthermore the history of the evolution that took place. The Sicilian Mafia started in poor Sicilian ghettos in America and spread into the cities striking fear into the American society. With around 2,500 members it is seen as the most powerful and the most active Italian organized criminal group in the United States of America. The Sicilian mafia is more commonly known as La Cosa Nostra.
Our team presentation focused on three Latino gangs, MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha), the Mexican Mafia and the Los Surenos gang. My part of the presentation was to provide information on the type of crime these three gangs are known to commit. The crimes committed by the MS-13 gang are varied, violent, and take place all over the country. The FBI even put together a task force called the MS-13 National Gang Task Force in December of 2004 to try to put a stop to this gang’s activities. (www.fbi.gov). Los Surenos or Sur-13, originally based in Los Angeles, has also branched out from turf wars with rival gangs to “for profit”, violent crimes across the country. The Mexican Mafia has a similar story to tell as well in regards to gang crimes, which again range from respect crimes, and retaliatory violence to crimes for profit.
Peter Maas declares organized crime the “biggest business in the country” (Maas). “The largest and best known organized crime group is the nationwide organization variously known as the ‘syndicate’, the ‘mob’, the ‘Mafia’, and the ‘Cosa Nostra’” (Nash, Jason O-155). Some activities of the Mafia include gambling, loan sharking, pornography, illicit drugs, and racketeering. The Mafia began in Sicily, but did not retain to just that one location. In fact, in the late nineteenth century many of the Sicilian members immigrated to the United States (Nash O-155). The Mafia in the United States contains members that are Americans with Sicilian ancestry (“Mafia” M-48). There are several Mafia groups in the United States. Law enforcement authorities agree that there are around twenty-five groups that operate in large cities across the nation (Nash O-155).
Today, a vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration traps too many Americans and weakens too many communities. And many aspects of our criminal justice system may actually exacerbate these problems, rather than alleviate them.
We are all affected by crime, whether we are a direct victim, a family member or a friend of a victim. It can interfere with your daily life, your personal sense of safety and your ability to trust others.