- Description
| CJA 384 Course Syllabus College of Criminal Justice and Security CJA/384 Version 2 Criminal Organizations |
Course Description
This course is a survey of the origins and development of organized crime in the United States. It examines the structure and activities of organized criminal enterprises, considers different models that have been employed to describe organized crime groups, and explores theories that have been advanced to explain the phenomenon. Major investigations of organized crime and legal strategies that have been developed to combat it are also considered.
Policies
Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents:
- University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document.
- Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials
University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality.
Course Materials
Lyman, M.D.,& Potter, G.W. (2007). Organized crime (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
Mallory, S.L. (2007). Understanding organized crime. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.
All electronic materials are available on the student website.
CJA 384 Week 1 DQ 1
What effect does the media play in our perception of organized crime? How should we view this perspective and are there any advantages or disadvantages from what the media informs us of regarding organized crime in our society?
CJA 384 Week 1 DQ 2
What is organized crime? What are some examples of organized crime? What are the similarities among various criminal organizations? Explain your answer.
CJA 384 Week 1 DQ 3
What is a patron-client network or organization? What are the distinctions between bureaucratic and patron-client organizations? Why are they important for understanding organized crime?
CJA 384 Week 1 DQ 4
What is an example of common behavior among organized crime groups? How do these behaviors affect the attributes of organized crime? How have these traits helped organized crime survive in the United States? Explain your answer.
CJA 384 Week 1 Summaries
Please post your Week One Summaries here as a reply to this post – Due Monday. Include what your opinions/thoughts are of the previous Week’s lessons and discussions. This is a requirement of the University.
CJA 384 Week 2 DQ 1
What are the various theories of organized crime? How does organizational theory help us understand organized crime? How is the theory of differential association relevant to explaining entry into organized crime? Explain your answer.
CJA 384 Week 2 DQ 2
Of the various criminality theories applicable to organized crime, which is most appropriate? Why?
CJA 384 Week 2 DQ 3
Why do some authorities consider organized crime a social institution? In what ways may you determine if this view is valid? Explain.
CJA 384 Week 2 DQ 4
What is the definition of a social institution?
CJA 384 Week 2 Summaries
Please post the Week Two Summaries here as a reply to this post – Due Monday.
CJA 384 Week 3 DQ 1
What is an example of a drug syndicate? Which events led to the association of organized crime, Prohibition, and drug syndicates? What changes would you have made to prevent this? Explain your answer.
CJA 384 Week 3 DQ 2
What are the major areas of the drug business? What is the relationship between its history, structure, and operational methods? Is there a better solution to the ways in which we combat the drug business? Explain your answer and provide recommendations.
CJA 384 Week 3 DQ 3
What is social disorganization? How does social disorganization contribute to organized crime? What is an example of social disorganization that created opportunistic atmospheres for organized crime?
CJA 384 Week 3 DQ 4
What is a political machine? How does corruption affect the role of politics and business, as it relates to organized crime? What is a specific instance in which corruption was evident?
CJA 384 Week 3 Summaries
Please post your Week Three Summaries here as a reply to this post – Due Monday.
CJA 384 Week 4 DQ 1
What are the interrelationships of organized crime groups? How do these relationships affect domestic crime groups? How do these relationships affect international criminal organizations? What would happen if these relationships improved or deteriorated?
CJA 384 Week 4 DQ 2
What are some examples of ethnically or racially organized crime? How do these differ from contemporary youth gangs? Compare and contrast the characteristic criteria for each group. Explain your findings.
CJA 384 Week 4 DQ 3
What is an example of organized crime based upon religious origins? What organizational crime type is representative in your community? What opportunities perpetuate organized crime in that community?
CJA 384 Week 4 DQ 4
What is the definition of terrorism? How would you differentiate between organized crime and terrorism? What is a specific instance in which organized crime and terrorism were viewed as the same or different?
CJA 384 Week 4 Summaries
Please post your Week Four Summaries here as a reply to this post – Due Monday.
CJA 384 Week 5 DQ 1
Where does the relationship of business, politics, or law and organized crime start? Why are these relationships successful? How may we better combat organized crime and its influences on business, politics, and law? Explain.
CJA 384 Week 5 DQ 2
What various law enforcement and intelligence agencies combat organized crime? How do legal limitations affect law enforcement efforts? What would happen if these limitations were more or less stringent? Explain your answer. Which do you think would work better: more traditional police enforcement of organized crime or new approaches for regulating organized crime connections in society?
CJA 384 Week 5 DQ 3
What is an example of a successful prosecution against organized crime? How effective are the current laws and statutes that aid in organized crime prosecutions? What changes would you suggest be made to improve the effectiveness of prosecution?
CJA 384 Week 5 DQ 4
What are the current trends of international organized crime? Why are criminal organizations moving toward these trends? Explain. Based on previously discussed trending information, what hypothesis may you make about the future of organized crime nationally and internationally? Support your hypothesis.
CJA 384 Week 5 Summaries
Please post your Week Five Summaries here as a reply to this post – Due Monday.
| Week One: Understanding Organized Crime | |||
| Details | Due | Points | |
| Objectives | 1.1 Define organized crime. 1.2 Compare the various models that explain the structure of organized crime groups. 1.3 Describe the attributes of organized crime and its common behavioral categories. | ||
| Readings | Read the Week One Read Me First. Read Ch. 1 of Organized Crime. Read Ch. 1 & 2 of Understanding Organized Crime. Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
| Participation | Participate in class discussion. | 2 | |
| Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | 4/17 & 4/19 | 2 |
| Nongraded Activities and Preparation | Familiarize yourself with the following websites:
· Michigan State University Libraries: Criminal Justice Resources: http://staff.lib.msu.edu/harris23/crimjust/ · Organized Crime Research: http://www.organized-crime.de/index.html | ||
| Learning Team Instructions | Select Learning Team members who will work together throughout the course. Createa Learning Team Charter. Review this week’s objectives and discuss additional insights and questions that may have arisen. Review the Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary assignment, due in Week Two. | 4/28 | |
| Individual Personal Perception of Organized Crime Paper | Write a 700- to 1,050-word paper, describing your personal perception of organized crime upon entering this course. Identify any assumptions on which your perception is based, and answer the following questions:
· How would you describe or define organized crime? · How does your perception compare to the definitions in the readings? · What characteristics do youthinkare associated with organized criminal behavior?
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. | 4/20 | 10 |
| Week Two: Theories of Organized Criminal Behavior | |||
| Details | Due | Points | |
| Objectives | 2 2.1 Evaluate empirical and speculative theories that have been used to explain organized criminal behavior. 2.2 Explain the perspective of organized crime as a social institution. | ||
| Readings | Read the Week Two Read Me First. Read Ch. 2 of Organized Crime. Read Ch. 3 of Understanding Organized Crime. Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
| Participation | Participate in class discussion. | 2 | |
| Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | 4/24&4/26 | 2 |
| Nongraded Activities and Preparation | Familiarize yourself with the following websites:
· TruTV®:http://www.trutv.com/index.html.
o Select TruTV® Library from the Menu. This will direct you to the TruTV® Crime Library. | ||
| Learning Team Instructions | Review this week’s objectives and discuss additional insights and questions that may have arisen. Submitthe Learning Team Charter. | 4/28 | |
| Individual Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary | Writea 350- to 700-word executive summary in which you compare distinctions between bureaucratic and patron-client organizations. Include similarities and differences between the main models of organized crime, and explain why the models are important for understanding organized crime.
Formatyour references consistent with APA guidelines. Three scholarly references required. | 4/27 | 5 |
| Week Three: The Evolution of Organized Crime and the Drug Business | |||
| Details | Due | Points | |
| Objectives | 3 3.1 Analyze the social disorganization in mid-19th-century America that created the climate for certain types of organized crime. 3.2 Explain the evolution of organized crime. 3.3 Describe the history, structure, and multinational operating methods of the drug business. 3.4 Analyze the relationship between organized crime, Prohibition, and early drug syndicates. 3.5 Identify changes in the various business interests of organized crime over the last 150 years. 3.6 Explain the role of corrupt political machines in fostering organized crime. | ||
| Readings | Read the Week Three Read Me First. Read Ch. 3–6 of Organized Crime. Review Ch. 2 of Understanding Organized Crime. Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
| Participation | Participate in class discussion. | 2 | |
| Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | 5/1&5/3 | 2 |
| Learning Team Instructions | Review this week’s objectives and discuss additional insights and questions that may have arisen. Review the Organized Crime Group Analysis assignment, due in Week Four. SUBMIT: A Learning Team Assignment will be announced at the end of Week 2. This assignment grade is in combination with your participation points for this week. Reference required. | 5/5 | |
| Individual Social Organized Crime Perspective Paper | Write a 700- to 1,050-word paper in which you discuss and explain the term social institution, as it applies to organized crime. Which empirical and speculative theories are most applicable when applied to organized crime and criminal behavior?
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Three scholarly references required. | 5/4 | 10 |
| Week Four: A Comparative Perspective on Organized Crime | |||
| Details | Due | Points | |
| Objectives | 4 4.1 Analyze the scope of domestic organized crime groups and identify their interrelationships. 4.2 Explain the relationship between early ethnic or racially organized crime groups and contemporary youth gangs. 4.3 Compare and contrast the political, ideological, and religious origins of organized crime groups. 4.4 Analyze the relationship between organized crime and terrorist activity. 4.5 Identify the prominent terrorist organizations worldwide. 4.6 Explain the political, social, and financial motivations of terrorist groups. | ||
| Readings | Read the Week Four Read Me First. Read Ch. 7–9 of Organized Crime. Read Ch. 10 & 11 of Understanding Organized Crime. Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
| Participation | Participate in class discussion. | 2 | |
| Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | 5/8 & 5/10 | 2 |
| Learning Team Instructions | Review this week’s objectives and discuss additional insights and questions that may have arisen. Review the Comparison of Organized Crime and Terrorist Groups Presentation assignment, due in Week Five. | ||
| Individual Social Disorganization Question-and-Answer | Writea 700- to 1,050-word response to the following questions:
· What is social disorganization?
· How does social disorganization relate to organized crime and its evolution?
· How well does social disorganization meet the criteria for organized crime and its various relationships? Why? Explain your answer.
· What is the correlation of corrupt political machines and social disorganization to the development of organized crime?
Formatyour resources consistent with APA guidelines. Three scholarly references required. | 5/11 | 5 |
| Learning Team Organized Crime Group Analysis | Write a 1,450- to 2,100-word paper that includes an in-depth historical analysis of an organized crime group.
· Select an organized crime group in the United States, in cities such as New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Miami, from the readings or additional resources.
· Determinethe group’s national and multinational structure and operating methods, pertaining to the drug business.
· Analyze the relationship of your group to its past andto its current role in Prohibition, drug syndicates, political corruption, and other illicit activities.
· Include the group’s various business interests over time.
Formatyour paper consistent with APA guidelines. Minimum three scholarly references required. | 5/12 | 15 |
| Week Five: Organized Crime’s Political and Corporate Alliances | |||
| Details | Due | Points | |
| Objectives | 5 5.1 Explain the relationship of organized crime to politics, business, and the law. 5.2 Describe the legal limitations of law enforcement and intelligence agencies in dealing with organized crime. 5.3 Critique major federal laws and strategies that have been developed to combat organized crime. 5.4 Assess the effectiveness of organized crime prosecutions. 5.5 Hypothesize possible future trends in organized crime at national and international levels. | ||
| Readings | Read the Week Five Read Me First. ReadCh. 10 of Organized Crime. Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. | ||
| Participation | Participate in class discussion. | 2 | |
| Discussion Questions | Respond to weekly discussion questions. | 5/15& 5/17 | 2 |
| Learning Team Instructions | Review this week’s objectives and discuss additional insights and questions that may have arisen. Submit your Learning Team Evaluation. Each team member must submit a separate copy to the facilitator. | ||
| Individual Controlling Organized Crime Paper | Write a 1,050- to 1,750-word paper, usingdefinitions, principles, and theories from previous assignments, in which you establish a thesis regarding the control of organized crime.
· Identify the problems presented and the various relationships established by organized crime.
· Describe the legal limitations associated with combating organized crime, including a critique of major federal laws and strategies that support this effort.
· Suggest a realistic solution to control organized crime by discussing and evaluating the effectiveness of organized crime prosecutions.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Three scholarly references required. | 5/25 | 20 |
| Learning Team Comparison of Organized Crime and Terrorist Groups Presentation | Createa 10- to 12-slide Microsoft®PowerPoint®presentation with speaker’s notes,comparinga domesticorganized criminal groupwitha terrorist group. Select one of each based on the readings and additional resources, and answer the following questions:
· What are the differences and similarities of organized crime and terrorism?
· What is the scope of each group and their interrelationships with similar groups?
· Explain the differences and similarities between the fundamental makeup of the groups’ origins as they relate to ethnic background, political ideology, social orientation, religion, and financial motivation.
· Identify past and current trends for each group, and plot out future trends or actions in which each group may potentially take part on a national and international level.
Format your references consistent with APA guidelines. Minimum of three scholarly references required.
Share your presentation with the class. | 5/26 | 15 |