Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

Criminal Justice Graduate Program Essay Exam Grading Rubric Grading of Essay Exams The following table represents the categories in which graduate essay exams are graded. Prior to submitting exams, students are encouraged to use a word processor with capabilities to check grammar and spelling. Students are also encouraged to re-read what has been written for proper tense and word usage. Late submissions will fall under the guidance provided by the instructor, exam instructions, and or within the course syllabus.Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

The total points possible for an Essay Exam are 100 points (essays will be an equal % of the total exam points). For example, a 5 question essay exam where essays earned an 80, 100, 90, 100, and 90 respectively, would equate to a 92% (A-) on the exam. Definitions and possible grades for each category of the rubric are provided below: Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

ESSAY EXAM RUBRIC EXEMPLARY LEVEL 100 ACCOMPLISHED LEVEL 90 DEVELOPING LEVEL 80 BEGINNING LEVEL 70 NO RESPONSE 0 CONTENT/CRITICAL THINKING 60 points: Student demonstrates a higher-level of critical thinking necessary for graduate level work. Learner provides a strategic approach in presenting examples of problem solving or critical thinking, while drawing logical conclusions, which are not immediately obvious. Student provides wellsupported ideas and reflection with a variety of current and/or world views in the essay. Student presents a genuine intellectual development of 55 points: Student exhibits a good command of critical thinking skills in the presentation of material and statements. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW Essay demonstrates the student’s above average use of relating concepts by using a variety of factors. Overall, student provides adequate conclusions, with 2 or fewer errors. 50 points: Student exhibits a basic understanding of the intended essay, but the thesis is not fully supported throughout the essay. While thesis helps to guide the development of the essay, the reader may have some difficulty in seeing linkages between thoughts. While student has included a few supporting facts and statements, this has limited the quality of the essay. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

45 points: Student demonstrates beginning understanding of key concepts involved in answering the essay question, but overlooks critical details. Learner is unable to apply information in a problemsolving fashion. Student presents confusing statements and facts in the essay. No evidence or little semblance of critical thinking skills. Zero points: Student failed to respond to the essay question. (Possible 60 points) ORGANIZATION OF IDEAS/FORMAT (Possible 20 points WRITING SKILL (Possible 20 points Note: Incidents of plagiarism will be handled according to school policy and at the discretion of the instructor. As a minimum a zero will be awarded for the essay/exam involved and a report filed with the school. ideas throughout the essay. 20 points: Student thoroughly understands and excels in explaining all major points of the essay question. An original, unique, and/or imaginative approach to overall ideas, concepts, and findings is presented. Overall flow of the essay response includes an appropriate leadin/introductory sentence or two, body, and ending. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

20 points: Student demonstrates an excellent command of grammar, as well as presents essay in a clear and concise writing style. Presents a thorough, extensive understanding of word usage. Student excels in the selection and development of a well- planned essay.CMRJ524 Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

Essay is error-free, or limited to no more than 2 errors. 18 points: Student explains the majority of points and concepts asked for in the essay. Learner demonstrates a good skill level in formatting and organizing material in their essay response. Student presents an above average level of preparedness, with few formatting errors. 18 points: Student provides an effective display of good writing and grammar. Essay reflects student’s ability to select appropriate word usage and presents an above-average presentation of a given topic or issue. Essay appears to be well written with no more than 4 errors. Student provides a good response to the essay question. 16 points: Student applies some points and concepts incorrectly. Student uses a variety of formatting styles, with some inconsistencies throughout the essay. Essay response does not have a continuous pattern of logical sequencing. 16 points: Student essay reflects basic writing and grammar, but with more than 5 errors. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

Key terms and concepts are somewhat vague and not completely explained by student. Student uses a basic vocabulary in the essay. Student’s writing ability is average, but demonstrates a basic understanding of the subject matter. 14 points: Student essay response reveals formatting errors and a lack of organization. Student presents an incomplete attempt to respond to and answer the essay question given Zero points: Student failed to respond to the essay question. 14 points: Student, topics, concepts, and ideas are not coherently discussed or expressed in the essay. Student’s writing style is weak and needs improvement, along with numerous proofreading errors. Essay response lacks clarity, consistency, and correctness. Student needs to review and revise the essay. Zero points: Student failed to respond to the essay question. LOSING THE MONOPOLY OF VIOLENCE: THE STATE, A DRUG WAR AND THE PARAMILITARIZATION OF ORGANIZED CRIME IN MEXICO (2007–10) Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, Michelle Keck and José Nava Abstract:  Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW This article examines the phenomenon of drug-related violence in Mexico and the causal factors that enabled the upsurge in the numbers of drug-related homicides during the period 2007–10 – the first 4 years of the so-called “war on drugs”. The authors explore regional statistics derived from official sources, as well as from both anecdotal and empirical research on the subject, and assess quantitatively the impact of different factors such as deteriorated economic conditions, corruption, a new configuration of organized crime, divisions between criminal organizations and the Mexican government’s strategy to fight organized crime. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

The study finds that the key forces that explain a massive increase in violence in the most recent years are the involvement of the federal forces in the fight against drug trafficking organizations (the State), the splits between criminal syndicates and what is defined here as the “paramilitarization” of organized crime in Mexico. Finally, the present analysis makes use of Max Weber’s (1919) “monopoly of violence” framework, and explains how the Mexican State has been losing this monopoly in recent years. Keywords: drug-related homicides, war on drugs, organized crime, the State, Max Weber, paramilitarization Introduction Violence in Mexico has reached unprecedented levels, particularly since the launch of military operations against drug-trafficking organizations – today known as transnational criminal organizations (TCOs)1 – in late 2006 by the administration of former Mexican President Felipe Calderón (2006–12).2 As of today, Mexico’s so-called “war on drugs” has officially claimed over 70,000 lives.3 During this period, more than 27,000 people disappeared. Many of these disappearances were linked to drug violence, while thousands of citizens have become internal refugees, displaced within Mexico. CMRJ524 Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

At the same time, some local governments have fallen under the control of criminal organizations. Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, Michelle Keck and José Nava are at the Department of Government at University of Texas at Brownsville, USA, guadalupe.correacabrera@utb.edu Produced and distributed by Pluto Journals www.plutojournals.com/scj/ SCJ 4_1 01 text 77 19/05/2015 19:35 78 Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, Michelle Keck and José Nava This article discusses the influence that two groups of factors have had on the seemingly irrational escalation of drug-related violence in Mexico in recent years. First, we assess the impact of socioeconomic factors, such as economic growth, unemployment, inequality and poverty. Second, we analyze more institutionalized dynamics endemic to this phenomenon, such as the change in Mexico’s political regime and the resulting decline in the State–organized crime nexus, the militarization of the fight against organized crime, the paramilitarization of TCOs and divisions between criminal organizations – like the one experienced in the State of Tamaulipas in early 2010 between the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

A factor of particular interest in this research is what we refer to as the “paramilitarization” of TCOs in Mexico. Although such groups cannot be described as true paramilitary units, the term, as we use it in this article, alludes to the change in operational and institutional practices by criminal organizations in a bid to attain regional or national supremacy over other market competitors (other criminal organizations), as well as over state forces. This phenomenon was possible due to a decline in the State–organized crime nexus in Mexico’s new democratic era. In some regions of the country, through the usage of these new tactics – based primarily on the exercise of extreme violence and military techniques – organized crime has functioned as an alternative state. At the same time, these new paramilitary criminal syndicates have been able to corrupt state, Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW  local and even federal law enforcement authorities, thus putting into question the capacity of the Mexican State itself by challenging its monopoly of the legitimate use of violence. By exploring Max Weber’s “monopoly of violence” framework, the present account shows how, in some parts of Mexico, organized crime, through its paramilitarization process, has become the de facto legitimized purveyor of violence at regional level, effectively supplanting the rule of the State and placing sociopolitical control in the hands of private individuals. Mexico’s Drug War, Democracy and Violence A Drug War and the Escalation of Drug-Related Violence in Mexico The political panorama in Mexico has changed substantially since former President Felipe Calderón took office on 1 December 2006 and declared a “war on drugs”. Since then, drug-related violence in Mexico has visibly intensified – particularly in the first 4 years of the Calderon administration. This period, marked by the ongoing conflict between Mexican TCOs and governmental forces, saw a momentous increase in violent, drug-related deaths, and the widespread use of barbaric, terror-inflicting methods, such as dismemberment, decapitation or the complete dissolution of human remains. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

TCOs also developed unconventional State Crime 4.1 Spring 2015 SCJ 4_1 01 text 78 19/05/2015 19:35 LOSING THE MONOPOLY OF VIOLENCE 79 terror tactics, including car bombs, mass kidnappings, grenade attacks, blockades and the execution of public officials (Nava 2011: 1). During this period, the Mexican State failed to subdue criminal organizations in some parts of the country and consequently lost its “monopoly of violence”. CMRJ524 Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

These years were marked by the widespread corruption of government officials at all levels, as well as by the proliferation of certain criminal practices. Drug trafficking organizations were able to diversify their operations and are now involved in lucrative new businesses such as kidnapping, extortion, migrant smuggling, human trafficking, weapons smuggling, video and music piracy, and trafficking of crude oil, natural gas and gasoline stolen from Mexico’s State petroleum company, among others. At the same time, a new domestic drug market emerged and spread throughout the country, which was able to provide cheap doses of drugs to domestic consumers. In the first few years of the so-called “drug war”, violence rapidly spread across the country. The northern/border states of the Mexican Republic were particularly affected. According to official statistics – released during Calderón’s administration – a total of 34,612 people were killed from 1 December 2006 till the end of 2010.4 The number of drug-related homicides kept increasing every year from the time that Calderón took over until the end of his presidency. According to the official reports by the Calderón government, there were a total of 2,826 homicides in 2007 and 15,273 in 2010 (Federal Government, Office of the Presidency 2010). Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

The emergence of paramilitary criminal groups in certain regions and the new government strategy to fight organized crime changed long established patterns of violence in Mexico, as well as the geographical distribution of conflicts across the country. Violence had tended to be concentrated on Mexico’s northwestern border regions, especially Chihuahua, as well as in Pacific states such as Sinaloa, Michoacán and Guerrero. The city of Ciudad Juárez registered the highest number of homicides during the first 4 years of Calderón’s administration – in 2010, approximately 3,100 people were killed in this border city just across the Rio Grande from El Paso, Texas. In recent years, violence has spread to other regions of Mexico, and has particularly increased in the states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, Michoacán and Tamaulipas. In 2010, nearly half of Mexico’s drug-related murders took place in Chihuahua, Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (Federal Government, Office of the Presidency 2010). Losing the Monopoly of Violence in Mexico’s “New Democratic” Times The ongoing bloody drug feud in Mexico has produced unprecedented levels of violence that is reflective of a transformation of the country’s political regime and a distinct nature of organized crime and the drug trade industry. Long gone are the days when the power of the State subjugated drug trafficking organizations Produced and distributed by Pluto Journals www.plutojournals.com/scj/ SCJ 4_1 01 text 79 19/05/2015 19:35 80 Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, Michelle Keck and José Nava and the State decided which actors were allowed to remain in the industry and which ones were eliminated. Mexico’s democratization changed the structure of power that had been institutionalized by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The ensuing political dissonance brought on by the triumph of the National Action Party (PAN) in the 2000 presidential elections – after more than 70 years of PRI dominance – had a significant impact on the role and leverage of Mexico’s drug syndicates. The shift in the power structure represented by the 2000 presidential elections led to the loss of control by the State over non-state actors. According to Edmons-Poli (2006), Mexico’s pre-2000 political regime was, … one of the most hierarchical and centralized in the world, with administrative, political and financial power firmly concentrated in the hands of the president and central (federal) government … [T]he country was so highly centralized that it more closely resembled an autocratic unitary polity than a constitutional federal republic: the legislature and judiciary were empty symbols of the separation of powers and states and municipalities had virtually no independent authority. CMRJ524 Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

(p. 388) The post-revolutionary system mentioned above was in reality “an authoritarian regime, capable of subordinating every existing social actor to the dispositions emanating from the highest ranks of political authority: fundamentally, the president as well as the political party that backed him up, in this case, the PRI” (Flores 2009: 137). The subsequent disintegration of the control apparatus that had been forged under the PRI allowed for the unrestricted exponential growth of Mexican-origin TCOs and a shift towards a much more violent and sophisticated methodology. The genesis of the conundrum posed by the “democratic” transition and its inability to achieve effective control measures to deal with organized crime were fueled by “factionalism” and by a “patrimonial conception of political power” that, according to Flores (2009), maintained sectarian divisions between political parties and thwarted the creation of agreements between them that could have produced the professionalization of the country’s security services and the cooperation between them needed to stop the growing power of Mexican TCOs (p. 325). In fact, Mexico’s ill-conceived patronage system laid the foundation for the present wave of violence that severely afflicts the country in various regions. Democracy simply fueled the challengers to actually break off from State dominance when it was at its weakest and most disoriented stage, during a significant top-down political overhaul. Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

Such was the old regime’s reach that it covered all sorts of businesses, even those of an illegitimate nature, in an attempt to maintain the party’s hold on power. As Steinberg (2011) states, State Crime 4.1 Spring 2015 SCJ 4_1 01 text 80 19/05/2015 19:35 LOSING THE MONOPOLY OF VIOLENCE 81 Drug trafficking was no exception. By and large, the PRI turned a blind eye to the illicit trade, so long as the cartels gave government officials a cut of the profits and prevented the violence from spilling into the traditional plaza. (p. 28) As long as peace was maintained, political partnerships allowed for the continuation of the illicit drug trade. But the 2000 presidential elections brought an end to such control measures and ushered in a new order for the country’s power structures, giving, in particular, a newfound operational freedom to drug trafficking organizations. In fact, “[l]ocal power brokers were suddenly free to negotiate their own arrangements, whether by forcing new deals with rival groups or by taking a more aggressive line on enforcement” (Steinberg 2011: 28). Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

The sudden disintegration of the decades-old political system that bound drug trafficking organizations to the domineering political party in Mexico allowed for an unprecedented expansion in their operations and brought with it a host of unforeseen changes that altered the drug industry and organized crime in general. In sum, the change in Mexico’s political power structure led drug trafficking organizations to evolve, expand their areas of influence and diversify their revenue streams, thus transforming themselves into truly transnational criminal entities. Exploiting the inexperience of new elected officials, Mexican TCOs were able to restructure their relationship with the State. In this new context, the paramilitarization of organized crime ignited a spiral of violence that overwhelmed the State’s capacity to effectively respond to criminal syndicates, which, at the same time, corrupted state, local and federal law enforcement authorities. Overall, this situation has undermined – if not deterred – the State’s capacity for an effective strategy to regain a semblance of control over its competing informal actors. The violence levels currently afflicting various parts of the Mexican territory are indicative of the degree of control and coercion that TCOs exert over localities and entire regions. At times, TCOs even substitute the State as the legitimate purveyor of control – consider, in particular, the cases of Michoacán (Grant 2014) and Tamaulipas (Hale 2010). Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW

The Causes of Drug-Related Violence in Today’s Mexico As of the previous account and considering recent studies on this subject (Guerrero 2011; Osorio 2012, 2013; Rios and Shirk 2011), one can identify some key factors that might have contributed to cause extreme levels of violence associated with organized crime in a new “democratic” Mexico. The factors proposed are as follows: (1) the paramilitarization of organized crime, (2) divisions between TCOs, (3) the Mexican government’s security strategy, (4) deteriorated Produced and distributed by Pluto Journals www.plutojournals.com/scj/ SCJ 4_1 01 text 81 19/05/2015 19:35 82 Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, Michelle Keck a… Great Depression and Prohibition Effects on Organized Crime HW