Organized crime control: The limits of government intervention

Abstract

This article explores generally prevailing explanations of organized crime in the United States, chiefly the “parasitic” and “symbiotic” models, and offers in their stead a synthesis of these two, called the “functionally exploitative” model. According to this model, law enforcement policies and strategies affect conditions in the illicit market. The proper role of law enforcement is to allocate scarce resources in accordance with the greatest “social good.” This may occur by either reducing the supply of or demand for illegal goods by allowing a monopoly to exist in the illicit market, or it might be by allowing competition. The article concludes that eliminating organized crime could destroy a cherished American principle—the freedom from government intervention. The goal of law enforcement is to maintain balance between the obligation of government to maintain its legitimacy and the civil rights of citizens.