Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs and Organized

Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs and Organized Crime

The Modern History of Organized Crime in America:

Organized crime has a long history in the United States going back further than the modern era of American law enforcement, on some levels. The Prohibition era in between 1920 and 1930 greatly increased the profitability of organized crime because of the continued public demand for illegal alcohol after it was prohibited on a national scale by the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. In many respects, this period was considered the heyday of organized crime because of the extent to which public officials, local, and in some cases, even state authorities were complicit with organized criminal gangs such as those lead by Al Capone in Chicago. Even the modern-day National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) owes its origin to Prohibition and the rum runner's circuit and the methods used by those involved in the illegal interstate transport of liquor during that period in the American South (Schmalleger, 2008).

By the time Prohibition was repealed by the 21st Amendment to the Constitution in 1933, the criminal enterprises that had profited the most from the illicit alcohol trade had become so powerful and wealthy that they still rivaled even the largest American police forces in firepower. Even worse, their political infiltration enabled them to branch out into many other industries to such a degree that some of their largest investments, such as in concrete, construction, interstate trucking, and labor unions, still persist into the modern era. It is widely acknowledged now that during World War II, the Italian Mafia or "La Cosa Nostra" (LCN) control over the ports along the Eastern seaboard that a tacit agreement between the federal government and LCN mob bosses seeded much of port security and counter-espionage efforts to the Italian Mafia, particularly on the New York waterfront (Schmalleger, 2008).

Domestically, a gang culture has also emerged in urban areas throughout the U.S. In which entire local communities are terrorized by violent street gangs, such as the Crips and Bloods and their many subsets and affiliated gangs. In addition to being responsible for drug trafficking, prostitution, and other major crimes in American cities, these criminal organizations are notorious for their hatred of law enforcement and have perpetrated numerous attacks in which police officers have been murdered. Likewise, civilians living in gang-dominated communities have been extremely reluctant to cooperate with police efforts to address gang-related crimes because of the propensity of these remorselessly violent street gangs to kill civilians who cooperate with criminal investigations or who testify against them at trial (Pinizzotto, Davis, & Miller, 2007).

The dominance of street gang culture in poor urban communities is particularly difficult to combat because of its multigenerational nature in which children are raised in families in which older siblings and even parents are involved in gangs. Even where that is not the case, street gangs are also notorious for recruiting members from among the pre-teen age group when prospective gang members have no understanding of the dangers and futility of gang life (Pinizzotto, Davis, & Miller, 2007).

Outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMGs) also have also played a significant role in contemporary organized crime since their evolution from social organizations of the 1950s and early 1960s into nationwide, and in some cases, international criminal enterprises. They are substantially involved in drug and weapons trafficking in addition to being responsible for numerous violent confrontations amongst themselves in ongoing conflicts over control over "turf."

The Origin of Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs:

In 1945, large numbers of returning American World War II veterans began purchasing Army surplus equipment such as the original Jeeps and motorcycle touring bikes used primarily as command transportation vehicles during the war effort. Demand for Harley Davidsons in particular increased so much that the company increased its production from approximately 200,000 units to well over 1 million by 1947 to accommodate the demand. In many cases, war veterans had difficulty assimilating back into civilian society and developed a nomadic lifestyle traveling the country with their fellow wartime service members (Henslin, 2002; Macionis, 2003).

Today, there are hundreds of OMGs in the U.S. some of which also maintain international chapters overseas. While most motorcycle clubs are not engaged in organized crime, some of the biggest and best known are considered bona fide outlaw organizations referred to by other motor cycle clubs as "1 Percenters." They include the Banditos, Hell's Angels, Mongols, Outlaws, and the Pagans. In addition to drug and weapons trafficking, members of the 1 Percenters are often extremely violent, although much of their violence is restricted to inter-organizational rivalry over territory. They are also widely engaged in the unlawful intimidation of non-criminal motorcycle clubs and often enforce their rules over such matters as the wearing of club patches in public with the threat of violence and actual violence where threats are ignored (Schmalleger, 2008).

While different OMGs maintain their own rules for recruitment and membership, generally, members start out as "hangers on" before being proposed by gang members for consideration as "prospects." During the prospect period, prospective members are hazed in various rituals of different character and degrees of humiliation and they are typically required to fulfill any and all orders of established club members in addition to being responsible for menial chores in clubhouses and meeting areas. After a period of time as a prospect, full members vote on their admission to the club at which time a single negative vote from an established member is grounds for refusal (Schmalleger, 2008).

Hell's Angels:

The best known of the post-war motorcycle clubs was the Hell's Angels, formed in 1948 in San Bernardino, California. Their death's head insignia that is still used by the association today was originally inspired by the markings of 85th Medium Bomber Squadron (Schmalleger, 2008). Though not initially founded as a criminal organization, the Hell's Angels earned a fearsome reputation for their frequent run-ins with law enforcement and their turf wars with rival motorcycle gangs.

That reputation was furthered after a 1969 incident during a Rolling Stones concert in Altamont, California when a confrontation between a Rolling Stones fan and members of the Hell's Angels hired as security by the band ended in the stabbing death of the fan (Schmalleger, 2008). More recently, in 2002, the Hell's Angels were involved in a video taped brawl in Harrah's Casino in Las Vegas Nevada that resulted in the death of one Mongol member and two Hell's Angels. Since the 1960s, the Hell's Angels have been implicated in large-scale criminal operations involving the manufacture, sale, and distribution of large quantities of narcotics and other controlled substance on a national level (Schmalleger, 2008).

More generally, the Hell's Angels also typically finance their criminal enterprises through numerous other criminal activities such as extortion, money laundering, and property crimes including organized motor vehicle and motorcycle theft rings. (Schmalleger, 2008). Current law enforcement estimates suggest that the Hell's Angels consists of approximately 100 chapters distributed in half of all American states, representing approximately 1,000 members domestically. International chapters number in excess of another 100, representing an additional 1,000 to 1,500 members in as many as 26 foreign nations (Schmalleger, 2008).

Outlaws:

The Outlaws are even older than the Hell's Angels, dating back to their establishment in McCook, Illinois in 1935. They are the predominant OMG in the Great Lakes region and outright enemies of other OMGs, especially the Hell's Angels. They currently operate nearly 100 American chapters in approximately 20 states, representing nearly 1,000 members. Internationally, the Outlaws maintain nearly the same number of additional chapters and membership in approximately one dozen foreign countries. They are believed to engage in an even wider array of violent criminal activity than the Hell's Angels, including many of the same criminal enterprises in addition to financial fraud, robbery, kidnapping for ransom, theft, and prostitution (Schmalleger, 2008).

Pagans:

The Pagans originated in Maryland in 1959 as a civilian motorcycle club but gradually evolved into a criminal organization that parallels the course of the Hell's Angels in many respects. While much smaller than the Hell's Angels, the Pagans represent approximately 250 members distributed among approximately 40 chapters in approximately one dozen American states. Like their larger counterpart, the Pagans are extensively involved in narcotics and other drug distribution, sales, and trafficking, in addition to extortion, murder, arson, and bombing for hire. The Pagans are most active in the Mid-Atlantic region and have established connections with other criminal organizations throughout New York, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh (Schmalleger, 2008).