Course

Organized Crime

Faculty
Humanities & Social Sciences
Department
Criminology
Course code
CRIM 3380
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15
Max class size
35
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Seminar
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course provides an examination of the many forms of organized crime from traditional organized crime groups to street level gangs. A review of relevant academic and legal sources will be conducted to illustrate the phenomenon of organized crime. A specific focus will be on current events in British Columbia and moreover, how local crime groups and crime industries impact on a global perspective. Additional topics will include political responses to organized crime and gang violence, and how people in Canada are influenced by media and the unique U.S. experience. Students will develop a comprehensive understanding of the topic through indepth study of relevant literature, research, and the evaluation of recent developments in the area.
Course content
  • History of Organized Crime Groups and Gangs (International Perspective)
  • Defining and Understanding Organized Crime
  • Distribution and Structures of Organized Crime
  • Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in Organized Crime
  • Gangs, Violence and the Drug Trade
  • British Columbia Gangs
  • Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs
  • Indigenous Gangs
  • The Media and Gang Violence
  • Community Programs and Policies
  • Police and Gang Interdiction
  • Future Consideration and Research
Learning activities

This course will employ a variety of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives, including some of the following:

  1. Lectures
  2. Seminars
  3. Audio visual material
  4. Small group discussions
  5. Research projects and papers
Means of assessment

Evaluation will be carried out in accordance with Douglas College policy.  Evaluation will be based on the course objectives.  The instructor will provide a written course outline with specific evaluation criteria at the beginning of the semester. 

 

An example of a possible evaluation scheme would be:

Research presentation         15%
Media project  15%
Essay  20%
Mid term  20%
Final exam  20%
Participation  10%
Total 100%
Learning outcomes

At the conclusion of the course the student will be able to: 

  1. Discuss historical accounts of organized crime and gang activity and the criminal justice approaches, including international gangs.
  2. Study and consider theoretical approaches to understanding organized crime. 
  3. Identify current criminal justice approaches to organized crime and gang activity.  This will include an examination of public perception of gang violence, and the impact of high visibility violence in public spaces.  This will include the role of the police in disrupting organized crime and gang entities and highlight the challenges in gathering admissible evidence to support criminal charges that will survive the Court process.
  4. Critically analyze the relevant literature and current events related to organized crime and gang activity.
  5. Identify political and legal forces that have bearing or influence in criminal justice approaches to organized crime and gang activity.
  6. Assess the implications of recent developments within the field and identify future directions of research and policy development in response to organized crime and gangs.
Textbook materials

Canadian Organized Crime, (2017), by Schneider, Stephen, Canadian Scholars

Weekly readings related to current events and contemporary issues.

Requisites

Prerequisites

CRIM 1100

Corequisites

Courses listed here must be completed either prior to or simultaneously with this course:

  • No corequisite courses

Equivalencies

Courses listed here are equivalent to this course and cannot be taken for further credit:

  • No equivalency courses

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for CRIM 3380
Athabasca University (AU) AU CRJS 3XX (3)
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU CRIM 3XX (3)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU CRIM 4900 (3)
Langara College (LANG) LANG CRIM 2XXX (3)
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU CRIM 459 (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU CRIM 2XXX (3)
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU HUMA 3XX (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO SOCI_O 2nd (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV ELEV_V 2nd (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV CRIM 412 (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC SOCI 3XX (1.5)

Course Offerings

Winter 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
35
Remaining seats:
0
On waitlist
27
Building
New Westminster - North Bldg.
Room
N4306
Times:
Start Time
15:30
-
End Time
18:20
Section notes

See Legal Studies (LGST) for other university transferable law and legal system courses.