NCJ Number
226776
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 37 Issue: 2 Dated: March/April 2009 Pages: 174-179
Date Published
April 2009
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study examined the criminal activity of the Big Four motorcycle gangs (the Pagans, the Bandidos, the Hell’s Angels, and the Outlaws).
Abstract
Findings show that the Big Four Clubs, or chapters of these clubs, often operate as gangs oriented toward criminal profit rather than motorcycle clubs. The most common type of criminal act identified in the research was ongoing instrumental acts, with 45 incidents recorded; these incidents were examples of organized crime. The data provided evidence of the violent nature of these clubs/gangs. The next most common type of criminal act described was planned aggressive acts, which had 18 incidents reported; these acts were violent acts directed at club rivals and often sanctioned by the officers of the clubs; motorcycle gangs do not tolerate rivals, either in the form of another club or an individual. There were several articles that pertained to clubhouse bombings and drive-by shootings that were for the sole purpose of ridding one club of a rival. The outlaw motorcycle culture focuses heavily on brotherhood and time spent in the saloon society milieu. The liberal flow of alcoholic beverages and methamphetamine use results in conflicts of an impulsive nature which was evident in 17 incidents considered under the spontaneous expressive acts category, which was the third most common criminal category. Brawling and fighting both appeared quite frequently throughout each set of incidents for all four of the clubs. The category with the fewest incidents was short-term instrumental acts with nine incidents; these offenses took place for the purposes of financial gain for only the member and not for the club as a whole. Data were collected using LexisNexis; a total of 631 articles were obtained and analyzed. Tables and references