Organized crime in California
Encyclopedia
Organized crime in California involves the criminal activities of organized crime
groups, gang
s, criminal extremists
, and terrorists
in California
.
s, and outlaw motorcycle gangs. Gang operations usually include "assault, auto theft, drive-by shooting, illegal drug and narcotic manufacturing, drug and
narcotic trafficking, forgery, fraud, home invasion robbery, identity theft, murder, weapons trafficking, witness intimidation, and violence against law enforcement."
. Eurasian criminal networks specialize in white-collar crime
, fraud
, prostitution
and human trafficking
. Crime cells from Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe impact public safety and the state's economy.
(ALF), Earth Liberation Front
(ELF), and various racial supremacy groups. International terrorists include Al-Qaeda
, Hamas
, Mujahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), and Jamaat ul-Fuqra (JUF), which are significant concerns in California.
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
groups, gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...
s, criminal extremists
Extremism
Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...
, and terrorists
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Gangs
Gangs in California are classified into three categories: criminal street gangs, prison gangPrison gang
Prison gang is a term used to denote any type of gang activity in prisons and correctional facilities. Prison officials and others in law enforcement use the term security threat group or STG...
s, and outlaw motorcycle gangs. Gang operations usually include "assault, auto theft, drive-by shooting, illegal drug and narcotic manufacturing, drug and
narcotic trafficking, forgery, fraud, home invasion robbery, identity theft, murder, weapons trafficking, witness intimidation, and violence against law enforcement."
Organized crime
Traditional organized crime are in the form of La Cosa Nostra (LCN), Sicilian Mafia, and CamorraCamorra
The Camorra is a Mafia-type criminal organization, or secret society, originating in the region of Campania and its capital Naples in Italy. It is one of the oldest and largest criminal organizations in Italy, dating to the 18th century.-Background:...
. Eurasian criminal networks specialize in white-collar crime
White-collar crime
Within the field of criminology, white-collar crime has been defined by Edwin Sutherland as "a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation" . Sutherland was a proponent of Symbolic Interactionism, and believed that criminal behavior was...
, fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
, prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
and human trafficking
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
. Crime cells from Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe impact public safety and the state's economy.
Terrorism
Domestic criminal extremists include the Animal Liberation FrontAnimal Liberation Front
The Animal Liberation Front is an international, underground leaderless resistance that engages in illegal direct action in pursuit of animal liberation...
(ALF), Earth Liberation Front
Earth Liberation Front
The Earth Liberation Front , also known as "Elves" or "The Elves", is the collective name for autonomous individuals or covert cells who, according to the ELF Press Office, use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop the exploitation and destruction of the environment".The ELF was founded...
(ELF), and various racial supremacy groups. International terrorists include Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
, Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
, Mujahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), and Jamaat ul-Fuqra (JUF), which are significant concerns in California.
Notable incidents
- 1987: ALF members are suspected of setting fire to the Animal Diagnostics Laboratory at University of California, DavisUniversity of California, DavisThe University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
, causing $4.5 million in damages. - 2000: Law enforcement agencies foiled plans by Al-Qaeda to detonate a bomb at Los Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually...
. - 2002: Law enforcement agencies foiled plans by Al-Qaeda to crash a plane into the Library Tower, also in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
Further reading
- To Live and Die in Oceanside (San Diego ReaderSan Diego ReaderThe San Diego Reader is the largest alternative press paper in the county of San Diego, distributed free in stands and private businesses throughout the county, funded by advertisements...
)