NCJ Number
120164
Journal
Criminology Volume: 27 Issue: 2 Dated: (May 1989) Pages: 183-208
Date Published
1989
Length
25 pages
Annotation
State-organized crime consists of acts described by law as criminal and committed by State officials in pursuit of their jobs as representatives of the State.
Abstract
Historically, the State-supported piracy that occurred between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries is an excellent example of State-organized crime. Today arms smuggling is one of the most important forms of State-organized crime. In the United States, the goal of fighting communism is sometimes thwarted by governmental inconsistencies. To comply with these legal limitations would sacrifice the missions of certain government officials. Modern nations have used assassination plots and political murders as tools for international politics. Variations in types and frequency of crimes can be based on a theory that in every era of political, economic, and social relations certain inherent contradictions are found, which produce conflicts and dilemmas that people struggle to resolve. In attempting to resolve one set of conflicts, law can create another. State organized crime is a political phenomenon, and to discover why it is more prevalent in certain forms of social organizations, it is important to study the different political, economic, and social systems in various historical periods. 56 references.