Im currently reading Donnie Brasco and I read something that made me wonder how powerful the mafia actually is.

"A guy had a pizza joint next door to Lefty's social club. Lefty decided he didn't like him anymore, so he beat him up and threw him off the street. The guy was an ordinary citizen, and he now wanted $2,000 for damages. Lefty said if he didn't come up with the money, the guy would press charges."

How would a regular and unconnected guy get away with pressing charges against a made man of one of the five families? I thought the mafia was somewhat untouchable when it came to getting snitched on by outsiders because of the retaliation involved. Am I overestimating the power of LCN?