Running Head: ORGANIZED CRIME 1

Name

Tutor

Institution
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Organized crime is a form of crime carried out by bands of criminals in an organized

nature. The criminal organizations take the shape of corporate companies with varying

organizational structures, chains of command and communication and various established

processes regarding the execution of actions. To understand the environment under which

criminal gangs operate, it is essential to come up with a distinct analysis of the circumstances

that lead to the birth of organized crime. Once organized criminal gangs begin their operations, it

is a tedious and sometimes futile exercise to attempt to slow down the influence and momentum

of their activities (Haugen, 2014). As such, a sociological, as well as a psychological approach to

this issue, gives an in-depth analysis that illuminates the root issues that are fertile breeding

grounds for crime (Welsh, 2008). Such an analysis can, therefore, come up with practical and

economic solutions to organized crime in the society. This paper seeks to examine how children

are involved in organized crime.

Organized crime has been defined as the actions taken by at least two people with the

intention of monetary gain or to gain power through illegal means. Such people often control

property such as buildings or machinery illegally. To gain power and influence, organized

criminals use both violence and threats (Kittle, 2017). Such acts coerce the public to give in to

their demands due to fear of physical or another type of harm. Organized crime is harder to

uproot given its leaders have to influence in legitimate aspects of the society such as the mass

media, government, law enforcement, justice department, corrections among others. Organized

criminals have chosen their path as any other professional does (Welsh, 2008). In some cases,

organized crime syndicates operate legitimate businesses to maintain public approval and avoid

scrutiny regarding the source of their wealth. When recruiting foot soldiers, organized crime

seeks he most vulnerable members of the society who are often children.
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Child gangs are known to be some of the most ruthless perpetrators of organized crime.

This comes about given the apparent innocence associated with the youth which can make it hard

to predict that they are about to commit a crime. There are also parents who are increasingly

distant from their children. This detachment disarms parents the crucial weapon of knowing

behavioural changes in children that may indicate involvement in a crime (Welsh, 2008).

According to (Juvenile Crime, 2017), children are easily influenced by their peers and they tend

to group into factions that have leaders and organizational structure. Such groups fill voids in

children often associated with identity crises. The most vulnerable children are those that lac

parenting figures in their lives who are available to offer guidance, advice, character shaping,

and role modelling to fine tune them to good behaviours (Haugen, 2014).

Child gangs possess various weapons such as hand guns and knives. Such weapons are

employed when committing violent crimes (Kittle, 2017). The threat posed by armed child gangs

is greater to human life than to property. For instance, child gangs are aware that their members

can be easily subdued by more mature members of the public. As such, they are more eager to

use the weapons on suspecting that they may be in danger. The increase in child gangs has

prompted societies to come up with various measures to combat their spread (Crime. 2007). This

requires identifying the effects associated with such asocial groups and coming up with ways to

reduce their impact on the society’s welfare (Schwartz, 2017).

The correlation between social class and gang membership is quite low. Child gangs are

composed of members from all social classes. In this context, social class refers to the economic

status of the family that a child is raised in. As such, poverty can’t be said to be the sole factor in

the child gang issue despite its significant role. There are often inherent problems in the families

that give rise to deviant behaviour from children (Schwartz, 2017). Such issues influence the
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nurture of the child and control them to adopt behaviours that are aggregated in gangs involved

in criminal activity. These issues could be alcohol and substance abuse by parents, domestic

violence, divorce or other actions that cause disruptions to the family setup, and having absentee

parents who are not available physically and emotionally to oversee the nurture of their children

(Crime, 2007). Once children lack a feeling of belonging at home, they seek companionship with

other children going through similar tribulations. As such, family issues are vital in addressing

the issue of child gangs.

There are various red flags that could indicate that a child is on their way to join a gang.

One indicator could be a sudden change in behaviour. This can often coincide with deteriorating

performance at school after a spate of consistently good performance. Another indicator is

truancy which is often accompanied by ignorance and disregard for others as well as own

welfare. More so, gangs often subscribe to specific dress codes, hair styles, non-verbal

communication patterns, and having certain tattoos inscribed on their skin. More so, gangs adorn

other forms of symbolism in art. In recent times, gangs maintain a connection through social

media accounts. Gangs also use graffiti and other forms of vandalism to mark territory and

announce their presence (Schwartz, 2017). To identify these red flags, it is vital to pay attention

to children and spend time with them often and regularly. Since some of the indicators are subtle,

inattentive parents can miss them easily (Haugen, 2014).

There are various policies, laws and institutions set up to deal with the menace of child

gangs. Law enforcement officers can be notified of criminal gangs after which they should

appropriate action to apprehend criminals and charge them in courts of law. However, reporting

a crime is not always easy if one is not guaranteed of their security (Kittle, 2017). It is therefore

vital to have hotline numbers that ensure anonymity of callers. After the reporting of criminal,
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juvenile activity to the authorities, it is important to follow up and ensure the necessary actions

are taken.

There are many sources of information regarding the actions that can be taken to prevent

child gangs from establishing themselves. These sources can be on the internet. There are many

alternative activities that young people can be involved in apart from crime. In this context,

young people refers to juveniles below the age of eighteen years. When unemployment is being

calculated, only adults are involved. Children are assumed to be in educational institutions

learning. However, the family and other institutions can fail to keep children busy and thereby

avoid their straying into antisocial behavior. (Haugen, 2014). More so, it is essential to have

social security safety nets that ensure all children have access to basic needs to reduce the need

for them to engage in economic activities.

Children are highly susceptible to peer pressure. One way of limiting the negative

impacts of peer pressure on children is to minimize the contacts they may have with negative

characters. For instance, when a child is at school, they are kept busy and disciplined. During

off-school periods, it may be critical to have programs that make gangs unattractive to the

children. Having a cordial, lively and fun environment at home reduces the need for the children

to seek other interactions to supplement their needs. Children raised in unstable families can

benefit from youth programs aimed at equipping them with skills that increase their

marketability for various economic activities. Furthermore, it is important to increase education

in schools regarding gangs and other social ills. At the same time, parents and teachers need to

educate children on the negative effects of drug abuse that is one of the primary features of gangs

(Haugen, 2014).
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When looking at crime on a broader basis, it emerges that all human societies have

always had certain people who choose to act in contradiction with established norms or rules.

There are numerous theories of crime and the causation patterns that lead to an act of crime.

Organized crime differs from unorganized crime since the organized crime gangs contain a more

formal structure. Being organized, such criminals are able to network, cooperate, manage

resources and plan better to commit crimes on a larger scale than in other types of crimes.

Organized crime gangs can have political goals or be apolitical, hierarchical structure, limited

memberships, written or unwritten rules and codes of conduct among members. Formal

hierarchies are often established as the gang expands in size and scope of operations. Members

often possess various skills that allow them to be specialized in the performance of tasks. The

forms of communication used are often designed to limit the possibility of interception by

external parties. For most gangs including child gangs, there is often a patron who is not

involved in executive activities but rather offers legal and economic aid when necessary.

Failure to curb the growth of child gangs lead to the development of more sophisticated

gangs as the children mature and become more experienced in crime. Child gangs have been

increasing in the world and are becoming a threat to the peace and stability of various

communities. Sometimes, such gangs cross borders to engage in criminal activity from various

countries. Such international networks rapidly add snow to the snowball that is becoming too

heavy to stop. The gangs are able to expand their power and influence to infiltrate political,

financial, legal, and educational systems of countries that they operate in. The internet makes it

easier for the gangs to coordinate their activities without requiring physical proximity (Lankford,

2009).
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Organized crime has different implication on economic systems. Black markets lead to

the sale of illegal goods and services in an economy at the expense of legitimate ones. The sale

of illicit substances such as drugs is also perpetrated by organized crime. Such illegitimate

business transactions happen without scrutiny by the relevant authorities. The government loses

revenue from taxes. Furthermore activities such as having counterfeit currency worsen the

financial health of the economy. Organized crime can also be involved in funding terror

activities. Organized criminals can benefit from terrorists by acquiring weapons. However, the

relationship between organized crime and terror is short-term.

Emerging issues in the fight against organized crime can be attributed to the state of the

society and the dynamic nature of society. The measures in place to deal with these organized

groups, therefore, need to be flexible enough to adapt to the changing face of this monster. A

practical enforcement solution needs to have the power to solve an issue whose shape, size and

complexity change randomly (Kittle, 2017). Critics of the current systems designed to tackle

organized crime point out that the systems are reactive rather than proactive. Furthermore, the

systems attempt to solve issues within the country’s borders without regard to the fact that crime

across the border easily spills over to domestic communities. More so, it is vital to analyze

whether state departments obligated to battle organized came are adequately equipped or whether

they need more resources. Increasing resources available is likely to be ineffective if the

available resources are not optimally allocated and distributed fairly across the agencies.

According to criminologists, three main theoretical prototypes emerge when studying

organized crime theories. These include the enterprise approach, alien-conspiracy also called

bureaucracy paradigm, and the patron-client relations perspective (Lankford, 2009). However,

the model or perspective desired determines the approach taken. In North America,
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criminologists who assume an organized crime establishment is characterized by hierarchical

organization look for conspiracy as well as coordination patterns in the organization. This drives

the assumption that cutting the head of the snake will kill off the rest of the criminal body.

However, this is not always certain to be successful despite the instability in introduces in the

organization. The enterprise approach focuses on illegal markets. This view assumes that

organized crime is serviced by markets in the same way a legitimate corporation is (Lankford,

2009).

Organized crime is a cancer in the society whose cure is yet to be found. People from all

walks of life are involved in organized crime. When children are involved in crime, the society

loses both in the short term and the long-term. Failure to combat organized crime can be

attributed to ignorance regarding the nature of such crimes and the motivational factors that drive

people to commit crimes. Organized crime has infiltrated societal institutions to the extent that it

can be regarded as a natural institution. Children's involvement in crimes can be attributed to

failure by nurturing elements to guide the children on the right path by meeting their diverse

needs. More so, religious institutions and schools failure to propagate social norms also fuel the

fire of organized crime. Apart from correctional behaviour, it is vital to address the cause of

crime in children which is the lack of appropriate nurture by adults or parenting figures. From an

economic perspective, crime can be a rational action given the context of the offender. It is the

role of the society to place children in situations that present crime as irrational actions that

minimize utility and social welfare.

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References

Welsh, I. (2008). Crime. New York : W. W. Norton, 2008.

Crime. (2017). Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1. Canini, M. (2007).

Crime. Farmington Hills, MI : Greenhaven Press/Thomson Gale, c2007.

Haugen, D. M., Musser, S., & Chaney, M. (2014). Organized crime. Farmington Hills,

Mich. : Greenhaven Press, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning, [2014].

Lankford, R. J. (2009). Organized crime. Farmington Hills, MI : Greenhaven Press,

c2009.

Kittle, J. (2017). A Literature Review on Gang Violence. Journal Of Trauma Nursing,

24(4), 270-279. doi:10.1097/JTN.0000000000000303

Schwartz, D., Hopmeyer, A., Luo, T., Ross, A. C., & Fischer, J. (2017). Affiliation with

Antisocial Crowds and Psychosocial Outcomes in a Gang-Impacted Urban

Middle School. Journal Of Early Adolescence, 37(4), 559-586.

Juvenile Crime. (2017). Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1.