CJA 384
Controlling Organized Crime
Combating organized crime can be an intricate task. Various laws exist in the fight against organized crime, and some have been successful in prosecuting several members of organized crime groups. However, without the refinement of such laws, organized crime groups will just find ways to get around such laws. Law enforcement efforts to combat organized crime can run into limitations as far as what law enforcement can and cannot do. Laws need to be changed to avoid such limitations. Without the changing of such laws, law enforcement efforts to combat organized crime will be almost wasted.
Organized crime has become a growing problem over the last several years. Organized crime can exist in any community and strikes fear into the individuals which live in the communities in which an organized crime group has set up base. An organized crime group will come into a community where the government is weak, or nearly non-existent. Setting up base in these types of communities makes it easier for the organized crime group to perform their illegal activities.
Organized crime groups have their hands in many illegal activities meant to make money. Illegal activities such as loan sharking, prostitution, illegal gambling, drug trafficking and human trafficking are just some examples of the activities organized crime groups are involved in. The problem with stopping these activities is that there can be a great number of people from one group committing these crimes, and getting to the “big fish” is almost impossible. Even if the small players are taken out of the game, those people likely will not tell who they are working for, making it almost impossible to take down the entire group.
With organized crime reaching across state and country boundaries, combating organized crime can run into legal limitations. Each state’s and country’s jurisdictional requirements are going to vary. Different jurisdictional