Deck 7: Changes in the Nature of Organized Crime

Question 1

How did the President's Commission characterize organized crime in 1967?

Answer 1

The core of organized crime was seen as 24 groups of Italian origin totaling 5,000 members, reiterating the conclusions of the Kefauver and Valachi hearings Interestingly, the Commission said this syndicate had changed its name from mafia to Cosa Nostra in order to account for the fact that Valachi claimed he had never heard of the mafia, and law enforcement officials claimed never having heard of Cosa Nostra prior to Valachi Suffice it to say, no one before or after this report has either repeated or provided evidence to support this assertion

Question 2

How did the 1987 President's Commission on Organized Crime differ in its characterization?

Answer 2

Organized crime was considered in broader terms as a multi-ethnic enterprise

Question 3

What is the primary source of income to organized crime according to the two Commission investigations?

Answer 3

1967: Gambling and loansharking the largest sources of revenues to organized crime only two paragraphs of the entire report devoted to narcotics and heroin the only drug mentioned by name
1987: Drug trafficking the most widespread and lucrative organized crime activity

Question 4

Why is corruption important to organized crime, and why is it difficult to determine its true extent?

Question 5

Why did the 1987 Commission find that gambling continues to be the activity most conducive to corruption?

Question 6

Why were new prosecution tools not a focus of the 1987 report, unlike 20 years earlier?

Question 7

How did the 1987 report characterize the organized crime prosecution effort?

Question 8

What did the 1987 report conclude about what should be done about gambling, and why do you think it came to this conclusion?

Question 9

Why is the suggestion of both Commissions debatable regarding the positive impact that severe penalties will have on drug trafficking?

Question 10

What problems in combating organized crime were cited by both investigations?

Question 11

What was the controversy that surrounded the release of the 1987 President's Commission on Organized Crime report?

Question 12

How have political changes around the world impacted the opportunities for organized crime during the past 10-15 years?

Question 13

How is it possible for large numbers of cars to be stolen, shipped overseas, and sold, given their large size and all the requirements for registration?

Question 14

Explain how a drug courier might bring narcotics into the United States without detection.
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Question 15

How are computers used to accomplish organized crimes?

Question 16

What is hijacking?

Question 17

How is hijacking most commonly related to organized crime?