NCJ Number
194655
Journal
Crime & Justice International Volume: 18 Issue: 60 Dated: March 2002 Pages: 9-10,26,27
Date Published
March 2002
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article presents a summary of a United States Department of Justice funded project on organized crime in the Ukraine and transnationally in the development of a risk assessment instrument that would assist law enforcement.
Abstract
American and Ukraine researchers were paired to study the following four problems: drug trafficking; human trafficking; the criminal justice response to organized crime; and the structure of organized crime groups. This article summarizes this federally funded project whose goal was to develop a risk assessment instrument. The article begins with a review of three factors that explain the existence of organized crime: opportunity factors, the criminal environment, and special access or skills. This is followed by an estimation of potential harm, activities at high risk for organized crime, and those exacerbating factors that contribute to the risk and include geographic location, local history, and cultural traditions and beliefs. Conclusions and recommendations include: (1) improvements in data collection; (2) a practical method of applying prediction methods to organized crime; (3) four parameters for an organized risk assessment tool; (4) a team approach to risk assessment; and (5) an organized crime impact assessment.