Has a lot of very useful books about La Cosa Nostra/OC etc.
Here's a listing ( and I didn't join
)
Angels, Mobsters & Narco-Terrorists by Antonio Nicaso and Lee Lamothe. The authors, both experienced journalists and writers, reveal the origins of the world's most secret and dangerous criminal societies. Focusing on North America's contribution to the globalization of crime (especially Canada), the authors show how these groups have conquered the world through vast networks that service an insatiable global demand for illegal sex and drugs. The book is divided into 10 parts: Italian, Asian, Russian, Israeli, Albanian, Colombian-Mexican, North American and African crime groups. The last two sections examine terrorist involvement and profit from associations with organized crime groups. The final section is a critique of laws, which the authors believe make Canada a safe haven for global criminals. The book takes a detailed historical approach showing patterns among the world's major criminal groups, which largely began as protectors and were later corrupted by their power. Nicaso and Lamothe show how members of these secret societies emigrated with law-abiding people from their own countries. Once established in a new place, they preyed first on their own communities, where police did not understand the language or culture. As they gained strength and wealth, they found ways to exploit their environment. (Wiley, 2006).
Black Brothers Inc.: The Violent Rise and Fall of PhiladelphiaÕs Black Mafia by Sean Patrick Griffin, describes the emergence of the ÒBlack MafiaÓ from Philadelphia's black ghettos during the 1960s and its growth into a major regional racketeering enterprise. Known as ÒBlack Brothers Incorporated,Ó the group came to control illicit drugs, loansharking, numbers gambling, extortion, and related criminal enterprises. The group was responsible for more than 40 murders, and was devastated by a series of major convictions of its leaders during the 1980s, but re-emerged under new leadership during the 1990s. The author is a former Philadelphia police officer, now an academic, is also author of PhiladelphiaÕs Black Mafia: A Social and Political History (Kluwer Academic, 2003). The book is thoroughly researched with many explanatory footnotes, relying on interviews, court transcripts, and related documents obtained from a variety of sources. It includes an index and 20 pages of photos. ( Milo Books, 2005).
Born to Steal: When the Mafia Hit Wall Street by Gary Weiss. This book by a BusinessWeek reporter tells the story of Louis Pasciuto, a man "born to steal," caught at age 25, and then became a witness against his former accomplices. Pasciuto moved from a gas station attendant to a Wall Street stockbroker with no knowledge whatsoever of investing. Using a series of schemes and lies he bilked investors using "chop shops" (which sold worthless stocks) and "bucket shops" (which pretended to sell stocks, but did not). Ultimately, Pasciuto was pressured by gangsters for a share of the profits. When caught by federal agents, Pasciuto joined their efforts against the "Mafia" in exchange for a place in the government's Witness Protection Program. An interesting account of ignorant, but clever, criminals with similar criminal lifestyles that ultimately devour each other. No index. (Warner Books, 2003).
Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob by George Anastasia, a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer is a updated re-issue of book first published in 1991(with new information on the fates of the organized crime figures since the book first appeared). The book begins in 1980 with the murder of Philadelphia mob boss Angelo Bruno, which unleashed a violent struggle for control, claiming 28 lives, and ultimately leaving Nicky Scarfo as boss. The story is told through the eyes of Nick Caramandi, a wiseguy-turned-witness, who once worked closely with Scarfo. Caramandi's testimony resulted in more than 50 convictions, including that of Scarfo who is serving a 55-year prison sentence. This is not a story that supports romantic mafia notions of codes of honor, loyalty, and respect. Instead, betrayal, deceit, and unprovoked violence characterize Scarfo's brief reign as head of Italian-American organized crime in Philadelphia. The book is an interesting case study of the rise and fall of a mafia leader, and the crucial role of Scarfo's personality in his demise. (Camino Books, 2004).
The Bullet or the Bribe: Taking Down ColombiaÕs Cali Drug Cartel,
by Ron Chepesiuk, is a well-documented account of the rise and fall of one of the largest cocaine trafficking organizations in history. Relying on interviews, first-hand accounts, DEA records, and documentary evidence the author provides fascinating insight into the reasons for the Cali CartelÕs entrepreneurial success, in light of the narco-terrorist tactics of its predecessor, the Medellin Cartel. It is shown how CaliÕs growth into a multinational network of immense size and its management failings ultimately permitted successful infiltration of the cartel. Arguably the most important case in DEA history, the book discusses how the Cali case changed drug trafficking organizations in Colombia and elsewhere, shrinking them in size and the altering the measures they now take to insulate themselves from prosecution. Another lesson the book illustrates is that only when law enforcement agencies began to cooperate and share information that the case was made. The Bullet or the Bribe offers a well-written account of how a criminal organization grows and changes in response to its environment and how successful law enforcement must do the same. (Praeger, 2003).
Characteristics of Chinese Human Smugglers, a publication from the National Institute of Justice reports on a study conducted by Sheldon Zhang and Ko-lin Chin that uncovered the inner workings of Chinese human smuggling organizations based on 129 interviews in New York, Los Angeles, and Fuzhou, China with self-identified smugglers. It was found that most human smugglers are ordinary citizens whose social networks provide the necessary connections and resources to profit from human trade. ÒThey form temporary business alliances, and their organizations can best be described as ad hoc task forcesÓ without any ÒgodfatherÓ or established command structure. The smugglers do not see themselves as criminals, but as providing a valuable service. Enforcement efforts need to consider the unique organization of smuggling enterprises and how smugglers are perceived by themselves and their clients. The publication is available free on-line at
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubs-sum/204989.htm (National Institute of Justice, 2004).
Critical Reflections on Transnational Organized Crime, Money Laundering, and Corruption, edited by Margaret Beare, contains 11 separate chapters written by 10, primarily Canadian, authors---many of whom are well-known researchers and writers in the field of organized crime. The book offers a skeptical assessment of the motives of policy makers in how they define and respond to transnational organized crime. The authors believe official agencies exaggerate or misidentify threats of transnational crime and conceal information in order to expand their size, budgets, and domains. Development of objective empirical information is often shunned, permitting ideologically held beliefs to endure. The book points to the problems created, for example, when working definitions of organized crime exclude corporate and white collar crimes which arguably cause greater harm, when "transnational crime" initiatives overlook its local aspects, and when global enforcement tools are recommended for crimes requiring a market-by-market analysis. As the editor observes, "a critical perspective is needed to evaluate these threats aggressively and prevent further unnecessary fear and waste of resources." A good index and bibliography help make this book useful to students. (University of Toronto Press, 2003).
Double Deal: The Inside Story of Murder, Unbridled Corruption and the Cop Who Was a Mobster,
co-written by Michael Corbitt and Sam Giancana recounts the Chicago-based criminal career of Michael Corbitt, who was a corrupt police officer and spent years in prison. The book is a Chicago version of New YorkÕs Henry Hill in Wiseguy. Corbitt dealt with well- known Chicago organized crime figures like like Sam "Momo" Giancana (yes, his co-author's uncle) and Tony Accardo. The book goes much farther, however, alleging wide-ranging government conspiracies. For example, Hy Larner, a central crime figure of 20-30 years ago, is described by Corbitt in his dealings with Meyer Lansky, the Shah of Iran, and Manuel Noriega, the Mossad, and the CIA. A popular read that seems to connect Corbitt and the government with organized crime at all levels. (William Morrow, 2003).
Images of America: The Chicago Outfit by John J. Binder is a pictorial history of the notorious Chicago organized crime group. Beginning with Big Jim Colosimo, the book offers brief narratives about the gang wars, Al Capone, Prohibition, Paul Ricca, Tony Accardo, and all the others to the present day, outlining the history of the Outfit, largely through captioned photographs. The attraction of this book is the photographs: there must be 200 of them, including news photos, police line-ups, and many other shots with explanatory captions. The book is a paperback of 128 pages and costs less than $20 (U.S.). An interesting pictorial history of one of AmericaÕs most legendary crime groups. (Arcadia Publishing, 2003).
Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style by Letizia Paoli describes the nature, structure, and changes in organized crime in Italy in recent years. Similar to the U.S., Italy experienced a dramatic prosecution effort against mafia groups (Cosa Nostra and ÔNdrangheta) beginning in the 1980s. Archival material and historical research have shown that mafia groups have existed in Sicily and Calabria since the early 19th century, but coordinating ÒcommissionsÓ apart from individual mafia groups were first set up in the Cosa Nostra during the 1950s (and not until the 1990s for the ÔNdrangheta). Paoli had unique access to records serving as a consultant to the anti-mafia police agency in Italy, and she interviewed important Italian informants including Tommaso Buscetta. Paoli finds recruitment into mafia groups increasingly difficult due to problems of maintaining loyalty and secrecy. This inability to expand and diversify has hurt the mafiaÕs Òmarket positionÓ in the illegal economy as it competes with non-mafia groups. The result is that ÒItalian illegal markets have over the last 20 years become increasingly multiethnic.Ó Similar to many other countries, Òside by side with local criminals we find illicit entrepreneurs coming from a variety of different countries who have no access to the legal economy.Ó An appealing look at the unique nature of organized crime in Italy and its many surprising similarities to organized crime in other countries. (Oxford University Press, 2003).
Mobsters, Unions, and Feds: The Mafia and the American Labor Movement - A book
by James Jacobs, a legal scholar and author of other books on organized crime in New York (Gotham Unbound and Busting the Mob) illustrates the interaction among the Mob, labor unions, and federal efforts to remove criminal influence in the unions. Oversight of unions has been difficult, and Jacobs outlines the historical failure of law enforcement to address the problem, especially in earlier years, replaced since with aggressive prosecutions of many mafia activities using the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) statute. Jacobs explains the federal efforts to free unions of corruption as part of a larger prosecution initiative which sent hundreds of organized crime figures to prison. Victories have been combined with frustrations, however, as federal oversight of union activity has proven both difficult and costly, because fraud and intimidation continue to pose problems. A good analysis of the problems in effecting lasting organizational change in a historically corrupt environment. (New York University Press, 2006).
Mob Nemesis: How the FBI Crippled Organized Crime by Joe Griffin with Don DeNevi. Griffin, a former FBI agent, describes the efforts to convict Cosa Nostra leaders in Buffalo, Cleveland, Rochester, and Youngstown, Ohio. The book is written in the first person and provides interesting background on Stefano Maggadino (cousin of Joe Bonanno and long-time mob leader in Buffalo), and Danny Greene, John Nardi, Ray Ferritto and others in Cleveland. An interesting look at the non-New York City travails of mafia-related organized crime. The book lacks an index, but offers interesting detail on an FBI career and the pursuit of significant mob figures (some smarter than others) in New York and Ohio. (Prometheus Books, 2002).
Organized Crime and Its Control in Central Asia Ð Written by Slawomir Redo, who spend several years in the region with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, this new book reports on organized crime in the five ÒStansÓ---Kazakhstan, Tajikstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and the Kyrgz Republic (formerly Kyrgzstan). This 220-page book offers valuable information about a region of the world about which little is known. Corrupt governments, longstanding ethnic divides, and a geographical location between major drug producing centers, places Central Asia at high risk for serious organized crime problems, which also includes arms trafficking, human trafficking, and money laundering. The nature and extent of these problems, and the groups involved, are identified in this book. The bookÕs strength lies in placing the organized crime issues of this region in context of the ethnic and Islamic traditions, and geo-politics of the region. The author also includes a chapters on the history of central Asian Òcriminal traditions and mentality,Ó which helps the reader understand the enduring nature of some of the problems of the region. (Huntsville, Texas: Office of International Criminal Justice, 2004).
Organized Crime in Our Times by Jay S. Albanese is the fourth edition of a softcover textbook designed for college and university students. It contains 12 chapters that cover the span of topics on organized crime. The book is unique in the emphasis it places on legal definitions and the criminal justice system response to organized crime. Chapters include one on definitional issues, two on Òcharacteristic organized crimesÓ (conspiracy, provision of illicit goods and services, infiltration of business, extortion, and racketeering), causes of organized crime, paradigms (models) of organized crime, myths and facts about the mafia, changes in organized crime (new types of crimes and government commission findings), and transnational organized crime, followed by separate chapters on investigative tools, prosecution, defense, and sentencing. The book is distinguished by many critical thinking exercises throughout based on actual cases. It also has an online instructorÕs guide and free copies of the book are available to instructors at
http://www.lexisnexis.com/anderson/criminaljustice/ (Lexis/Nexis/Anderson, 2004).
Organised Crime in Europe: Concepts, Patterns and Control Policies in the European Union and Beyond edited by Cyrille Fijnaut and Letizia Paoli is a massive, 1,000-page effort divided into three parts: organised crime history (8 chapters), contemporary patterns (14 chapters), and organised crime control policies (12 chapters). The editors provide useful introductions to each section and syntheses at the end of each section, resulting in integration of ideas rarely seen in edited volumes. The bookÕs 33 contributors from 13 European countries include many of the leading European writers and researchers on organised crime, and the bookÕs contents focus exclusively on Europe , although global implications are clear. Given the unique period of history we live in, the expansion of Europe , growth of criminal markets, and world attention to transnational organised crime, this encyclopedic volume is the most comprehensive examination of organised crime in Europe that currently exists (Springer, 2004).
Organized Crime: World Perspectives, edited by J. Albanese, D. Das, and A. Verma. Written by natives of each of the countries represented in the text, this unique collection illustrates the similarities and differences in organized crime around the world. Each country's demographics and location are described and continent maps included. Chapters on the United States, Canada, Italy, Poland, Russia, Austria, Council of Europe, India, Japan, China, Colombia, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Tunisia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Slovenia, Netherlands, plus an integrative introduction, conclusion, and continent introductions for each section are included. (Prentice Hall, 2003).
Organized Crime and American Power: A History by Michael Woodiwiss defines organized crime in broad terms, tracing it from early antecedents in Rome, and linking it to racism, poor treatment of native Americans, the cold war, corporate power, the war on drugs, and political corruption. The author argues that U.S. policies have sometimes contributed to organized crime (e.g., Prohibition and drug laws) and that the Mafia paradigm oversimplifies the dimensions of the problem of organized crime, often serving the interests of political and corporate elites. (University of Toronto Press, 2002).
Organized Crime and the Challenge to Democracy, edited by Felia Allum and Renate Siebert, is a collection of 12 chapters on the connections of organized crime to the power of the state, and its effect upon civil society and politics. About half the authors are from Italy, and the chapters reflect this emphasis, although there are separate chapters on Yakuza, the USA, Russia, Colombia, and Marseilles (France). The book addresses the paradox that organized crime needs the "space" provided by democracy to flourish, but at the same time it also poses a serious threat to democracy. Criminal organizations succeed according to their ability to manage changes in the modern world (e.g., globalization, technology), while also maintaining control of the more static and traditional local environment. The editors conclude that organized crime "represents the hidden and dark side of our modern-day democratic systems," running either parallel to them or controlling them with corrupt intertwining relationships. A contemporary assessment of the relationships among the State, civil society, politics, and organized crime in different cultural contexts. (Routledge, 2003).
Organizing Crime in Chinatown: Race and Racketeering in New York City, 1890-1910 by Jeffrey Scott McIllwain, challenges prevailing notions that Italian, and to a lesser extent Jewish, gangsters dominated organized crime activity in New York City at the dawn of the 20th century. Using documentary sources from the period and the broader literature of the Chinese experience in America, the authorÕs historical analysis presents evidence that Chinese organized criminals were very much involved in criminal enterprises, especially illegal gambling, prostitution, and narcotics. Interesting insights are offered about the nature of these enterprises as multi-ethnic Òsocial networks,Ó how Chinese organized crime was intrinsically connected to the hostile racist environment of the period, and the interstate and international connections of these crime networks. A revisionist history of organized crime during an important era using a multidisciplinary approach that is well-documented with sources, bibliography, and images from the period. (McFarland & Company, 2004).
PhiladelphiaÕs Black Mafia: A Social and Political History by Sean Patrick Griffin is the first sociological analysis of Philadelphia's "Black Mafia" which organized criminal activity in African-American sections of the city beginning in the late 1960's. The book uses law enforcement files, court transcripts, interviews, and prior research to document and explain the groupÕs successes and failures over time. The groupÕs influence has declined due to a concerted prosecution effort and hasnÕt been able to regain the power it had in the 1970s, but it is an especially interesting read, given the 2003 mayoral election in Philadelphia that apparently was influenced by the discovery of an FBI wiretap in the office of the incumbent mayor only weeks before the election. The presence of the wiretap is said to have been a major factor in the re-election of the incumbent. A leading figure from GriffinÕs book has turned up in the recent controversy regarding the FBI probe. (Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2003).
Smokescreen by Paul William Roberts and Norman Snider recounts the true story of Cal Broeker, a successful businessman from upstate New York , who discovered his business partners in Montreal were linked to organized crime. To re-establish himself, Broeker ultimately became an undercover operative for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Secret Service for seven years. The bookÕs title comes from the illegal trafficking in cigarettes through Native American reservations located between Canada and the U.S., but Broeker also penetrated biker gangs, drug cartels, and the Russian mafia on both sides of the Canadian/American borderÑall looking for a piece of the market in smuggled goods of all kinds. The book is filled with actual conversations, follows a quickly-paced time-line, and some case-related documents are included in an appendix. (Raincoast Books, 2004).
The Prediction and Control of Organized Crime, edited by James O. Finckenauer and Jennifer L. Schrock, is a collection of 10 papers (including an introduction by the editors) that summarizes the results of a unique research partnership between the USA and Ukraine, in which U.S. and Ukraine researchers were joined together into four small groups focusing on drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings, the criminal justice response to organized crime, and an assessment of organized crimeÕs nature, types, and risk. The chapters in the book reflect these issues with three chapters written by Americans, five by Ukrainians, and two are jointly authored by Americans and Ukrainians. Much of this material about Ukraine , and its implications for the U.S. and other affected countries, appears here in English for the first time. This joint project was funded by the U.S. State Department and administered by the National Institute of Justice, and it could become a model for joint international efforts to investigate and make recommendations for addressing transnational crime that account for legal differences and cultural context. (Transaction Publishers, 2004).
Takedown: The Fall of the Last Mafia Empire, by Rick Cowan and Douglas Century, recounts the undercover investigation that led to the fall of mafia influence in the trash-hauling industry in new York City. Cowan worked undercover during the 1990s, posing as an employee in a warehouse on the Brooklyn waterfront. The book us based on his recollections, many hours of records conversations, and trial transcripts. It details a story of systematic extortion of entire industry, how is operated, and why it continued. The book also covers the subsequent trials and convictions of members of the Gambino and Genovese crime groups in New York in this racket. An interesting, first-hand account. (G.P. PutnamÕs Sons 2003).
The Way of the Wiseguy by Donnie Brasco (a.k.a. Joseph Pistone) is a book about the everyday lifestyles of organized crime figures in New York . The bookÕs 34 chapters are short and have titles such as Ò ÒWiseguy table manners,Ó Wiseguy nicknames,Ó ÒItÕs your best friend who will kill you,Ó and ÒWiseguys arenÕt great shots,Ó The book is light reading and written well, and the authorÕs impressive background (as a successful former FBI undercover agent and author of Donnie Brasco) makes it worth a look. The book comes with a CD that contains actual eavesdropped conversations from BrascoÕs undercover days. Transcripts of these conversations are also included in the book. The organized crime figures mince the English language badly, and are notoriously foul-mouthed, but they are also entertaining and sometimes intriguing with their peculiar world view. (Running Press, 2004).
Transnational Crime, edited by Jay Albanese, includes seven contributions on the subjects of trafficking in human beings, intellectual property theft, commercial sexual exploitation of children, the law enforcement response to transnational crime and terrorism, and how we teach and understand the methodology of different cultures and account for divergent perspectives on social problems. Lead authors include Dina Siegel, Hedi Nasheri, Heather Clawson, Rosemary Barberet, William McDonald, and Jay Albanese. (de Sitter Publications, 2005).
Village Politics and the Mafia in Sicily by Filippo Sabetti is a new edition of a book first published in 1984 with the title Political Authority in a Sicilian Village. With a much more interesting title, the book contains a new introduction and new information, based on the authorÕs return, 25 years later, to the village where he had first done his fieldwork in the 1970s. The book reports on a case study of a single village in Sicily, covering more than 100 years, in an effort to get at the larger issues of village life under a changing variety of governmental and less formal political structures and authority. The author concludes that traditional views of the emergence of a mafia in Sicily may not represent an island-wide truth. The linkage among private protection, use of the term "mafia" to label anti-government opposition in general, and whether governments are "captured" by the mafia or the reverse, the author shows "the mafia phenomenon is not a constant but varies in terms of partners in crime, demand for illegal products, criminal opportunities, and the laws and regulations of government, as well as contingencies of times and place." The author is a professor of political science at McGill University in Canada. (McGill-QueenÕs University Press 2002).
The Violent Years: Prohibition and the Detroit Mobs by Paul Kavieff carries forward from the authorÕs previous book, The Purple Gang, describing Prohibition-Era gangs in Detroit. The Purple Gang was a largely Jewish group, but the groups described in this new volume come from many different ethnic backgrounds. The organization of the gangs and how they corresponded to ethnic demographics of the region are detailed. Included is a section of the "River Gang," which was a precursor of Detroit's later mafia family. (Barricade Books 2002).
Wages of Crime: Black Markets, Illegal Finance, and the Underworld Economy by R.T. Naylor provides a critical look at the ÒWar on Terror,Ó suggesting that the post 9/11 preoccupation with terrorism, criminal organizations, and their financing has been used to justify long desired expanded law enforcement powers. A professor of economics at McGill University ( Canada ), Naylor has written extensively in criminology. He is critical of the widely repeated claim that we are now in Òthe most massive and insidious criminal assault in history.Ó Subsequent chapters on terrorist financing, international gun running, money laundering and offshore havens, the gold business, asset seizures, and the terrorism-organized crime linkage dispel common beliefs, concluding that myths and misrepresentation have portrayed mafia and terrorist organizations as larger-than-life demons, resulting in far-reaching law enforcement tactics that are misdirected and result in abuses. This seven-chapter, 380-page book is a revised, paperback edition of the hardcover version (Cornell University Press, 2004).
Witsec: Inside the Federal Witness Protection Program by Pete Early and Gerald Schur. Schur was the founder of the U.S. witness protection program during the 1960s before it was formally established by law in 1970. The book offers his account of the problems encountered in creating new lives and identities for subjects who were mostly career criminals. Interesting background on many well-known figures including Joe Valachi, Joe Barboza, Jimmy Fratianno, Sammy Gravano, and others. Those interested in government operations will also appreciate the insights into how this program was alternately supported, and then attacked, over the years as political, public, and media interest shifted over time. (Bantam Books, 2003).
