Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs

A Theoretical Perspective

M. Lauchs, A. Bain, P. Bell

• Publisher: Palgrave Pivot
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9781137456281
• eBook ISBN: 9781137456298
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Criminology
• Index: Social Sciences

Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs are increasingly seen as a threat to communities around the world. They are a visible threat as a recognizable symbol of deviance and violence. This book uses gang and organized crime theory to explain the groups and looks at policing and political responses to the clubs' activities.

1

Introduction

Abstract: This chapter is an introduction to the book. It raises the fundamental issue of a lack of publications addressing theory and the OMCGs. The chapter begins with a short outline of the nature of ‘One Percenter’ OMCGs and their position in society. It also considers whether these clubs can be characterized as criminal organizations. Finally, the chapter provides an outline of the chapters to follow.

Lauchs, Mark, Andy Bain and Peter Bell. Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs: A Theoretical Perspective. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. DOI: 10.1057/9781137456298.0003.

Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMCGs) began as delinquent groups of young men who were more social misfits than threats to society. They are outlaws not from the law but from the mainstream motorcycle club community. OMCGs are also referred to as ‘One Percenter’ clubs; that is, the 1 per cent who break the law compared with the law abiding 99 per cent. The clubs took on these derogatory terms as honorifics and now display them as badges on their uniforms. As time passed there was a gradual shift towards serious criminal activity by the members of OMCGs which progressed to participation in organized crime. OMCGs have developed independently in most Western nations as well as spreading on a franchise basis from the United States (US) to other countries. It is unclear when the participation in organized crime began. For example, it may be that it spread with the migration of the ‘Big 4’ US clubs – the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (Hells Angels), the Bandidos, the Outlaws MC and the Pagans – to other parts of the world. It is also possible that the move was a natural progression from being a violent club to the recruitment of that violence for profit. This book does not try to answer this question but presents an academic approach to the topic which has largely been the subject of exaggeration and misinformation.

OMCGs are clubs that run on a military style of leadership but with a democratic decision-making process. OMCG members have historically exhibited a contradictory notion of freedom. Each club has based its structure and rules on the original Hells Angels’ guide: elected officials, usually including a President, Vice President, Treasurer, Road Captain and Sergeant at Arms. They place their fellow members before all other relationships, vote democratically on major decisions, and support the club financially as well as through their presence at weekly meetings and regular long motorcycle rides.

While OMCGs revel in their freedom from mainstream society, including commitment such as marriage (Wolf, 1991; Posnansky, 1988), they have a military notion of obedience and commitment to the club including strict compliance with participation in club events and adherence to a dress code. Club members have therefore found it hard to find employment and often turn to petty crime for income. Barker (2007) notes that the patterns of behaviour of OMCG members are designed to come into conflict with mainstream society and therefore attract the attention of law enforcement.

However, OMCGs are portrayed by government agencies and the media as serious organized crime gangs. The Australian Crime Commission (ACC) describes them as ‘one of the most high profile manifestations of organised crime’ (ACC, 2013). The criminal records of OMCG members show a more nuanced picture than the public image. Almost all members of clubs have convictions but we have to differentiate between organized crime-associated offences and barbarian culture offences. Barbarian offences are those that match the traditional notion of an outsider subculture that acts in a manner unacceptable to society and represents radical freedom. These can include traffic offences, violence associated with brawling (but not extortion or murder) and minor drug and alcohol offences. Organized crimes have a different nature; they include major drug offences such as supply or trafficking, extortion, money laundering, prostitution, murder for hire, etc. Barker (2011) provides an extensive list of such offences committed by OMCGs in the US. Those who want to use the club for this type of crime are radicals in so far as they change the nature of the club from a delinquent group into a criminal organization.

Radicals can rely on the ‘Power of the Patch’ – the violent reputation of OMCG members – as a tool of intimidation (Barker, 2011). The brand and image are marketable commodities that increase their power (Quinn & Koch, 2003). In other words, the fear generated from the traditional activity provides a tool that supports the radical organized criminal activity. Quinn and Koch (2003) point out a further complicating factor in that the Big 4 have elite subgroups responsible for lethal violence. However, this violence is equally useful to both barbarian and radical cultures. The conclusion of law enforcement is that, regardless of the nuances, OMCGs present a threat to society.

Membership in an OMCG is based on the local franchise of the club, known as the chapter. Members have to pass an initiation period as a nominee before possibly receiving full membership if they have the support of all existing members. Once they are approved they can wear the full patch of the club on the back of their jacket; that is, they become a fully patched member. Thus the clubs are very exclusive and take great care in the selection of their members. Despite this they have extensive support bases.

While the reported size and number of OMCGs in countries such as the US may appear insignificant in comparison to more than 40,000 registered urban street gangs, the ratio of threat to national gang composition, for example, is quite concerning. The National Gang Intelligence Centre (NGIC) noted that in 2013 OMCGs were reported as the greatest threat in approximately 11 per cent of jurisdictions, despite comprising only 2.5 per cent of the national gang composition (NGIC, 2013). Law enforcement reporting in the US indicates a significant increase in OMCGs in a number of jurisdictions, with approximately 44,000 members nationwide comprising approximately 3,000 gangs. This includes ‘One Percenter’ gangs as well as support and puppet clubs. Jurisdictions in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia are experiencing the most significant increase in OMCG presence. The Wheels of Soul, Mongols, Outlaws MC, Pagans and Vagos have expanded in several states. This increases the potential for gang-related turf wars between local OMCGs (NGIC, 2013).

According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) the Hells Angels has 34 chapters operating in Canada with 460 full-patched members. The Canadian Broadcast Commission (CBC, 2009) reported that Hells Angels had at one time fifteen chapters in Ontario, eight in British Columbia, five in Quebec, three in Alberta, two in Saskatchewan and one in Manitoba. In a speech to the House of Commons, Bloc Quebecois MP, R’eal Menard, stated that there were 38 chapters in Canada in the mid-1990s and that Canada has more Hells Angels members per capita than any other country (CBC, 2009).

The ACC’s 2013 assessment of OMCGs suggests that there are more than 40 OMCGs operating in Australia, supporting approximately 6,000 patched members. The total club and membership numbers of Australian OMCGs are rising (ACC, n.d.). The involvement of OMCG members in such crimes as the production, sale and supply of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATSs), weapons trafficking, homicide, drive-by shootings, extortion and various street offences that include affray and serious assault has sparked contentious debate within the literature as to whether the gang itself is a criminal organization or if the criminal activity is confined to a minority of members within the organization.

In recent years OMCGs have become the focus of legislation across Australia. Beginning with the Serious and Organised Crime (Control) Act 2008 in South Australia, states and territories have attempted to develop legislation that enhances the ability of governments to respond to the perceived threat of OMCGs to society. The core of the legislation is the application of anti-association laws based on the presumption that the clubs are criminal organizations, rather than organizations with a criminal faction within them. However, this presumption has not been tested by detailed evidence nor been the subject of reflection based on current theories of gang behaviour or organized crime activity.

Thus the criminal activity of OMCGs has not received the scholarly attention that it deserves (Montgomery, 1976; Shamblin, 1971; Hopper & Moore, 1983; Barker & Human, 2009). There are very few rigorous academic studies of the topic (Barker & Human, 2009). Most sources have not progressed further than the journalistic treatment begun by Hunter Thomson (1966) in Hell’s Angels. Other academic papers are mostly descriptive (Barker, 2007; Barker & Human, 2009) and do not examine or develop theoretical explanations for OMCGs’ behaviour. There have been studies of the culture of motorcycle clubs and their lifestyle but not of the deviant and criminal nature of members’ activities (Danner & Silverman, 1986; Morselli, 2009).

This book makes a contribution to addressing this issue by providing some background and analysis. It begins in Chapter 2 with a history of the OMCG phenomenon. This takes in the rise of the clubs and their expansion around the world. This chapter also focuses on the move towards serious criminal activity.

Most of the analysis of OMCGs has begun from their criminal activity and there is little research on their nature as organizations. This book addresses this in two ways. First, Chapter 3 examines the link between OMCGs and gang theory. OMCGs are usually referred to as gangs; however they prefer to be called clubs. ‘Gang’ implies that they are somewhat anarchic and lawless while they believe that ‘club’ better reflects their structure, rules and, they claim, mostly law-abiding nature. Street gangs and OMCGs share many characteristics of purpose and reasons why members join. While OMCGs generally only take adult members, the social forces that drive membership may be similar to those that revolve around the formation and growth of youth gangs.

Second, Chapter 4 applies the current theory of organized crime to OMCGs. This chapter attempts to answer the question at the heart of the legal and policing response to these groups: namely, are they criminal organizations or organizations with criminals within them? In other words, is the serious criminal activity of OMCGs the work of individual members and their associates or is it driven by the senior membership of the gang itself, utilizing the resources that the club provides? The chapter asks what an organized crime group would look like and whether the clubs or their chapters match this description.

The book then turns to the question of how governments respond to OMCGs. We look at three jurisdictions that have all recognized that they have serious issues with OMCG criminal activity: the US, Canada and Australia. All three have experienced decades of increasing organized criminal activity by OMCG members, seen a growing connection between these groups and traditional organized crime groups, and noted significant increases in violence by OMCG members.

Chapter 5 looks at how these nations police OMCGs, discussing best practice policing as it has developed across the three jurisdictions. Police strategies specifically address criminal activity and do not have to rely on the answer to the question of whether the clubs are criminal organizations. These strategies focus on individuals and their participation, either directly or indirectly, in crime. However, police also recognize that the crimes are conducted by sophisticated and layered networks that need equally sophisticated responses. This chapter outlines these responses, noting the successes that have resulted from different strategies.

Chapter 6 discusses the political responses to OMCGs. It raises the issue that the exaggeration of OMCG activity and their stigmatization based on their visibility in society may lead to a disproportionate legal response that results in injustice, not only for the offenders but also for the broader society. It does this by setting a benchmark of proportionate responses to an established serious criminal threat to society, namely the Italian anti-Mafia laws. The US, Canadian and Australian legislative responses will be tested against this benchmark to determine whether they are equally proportionate.

It is expected that this approach will provide a strong overview of OMCGs from a theoretical and applied perspective. It is anticipated that this better understanding of the OMCG phenomenon will lead to better policing and policy outcomes for governments and society.

2

History of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs

Abstract: Chapter 2 provides an important discussion of the history of the OMCGs and their development as local, national and international organizations. However, where other authors have discussed the rise of the outlaw motorcycle clubs and gangs, what is often missing from this is an examination of the social context at the time, and how this may have impacted individual behaviour and decisions. In this way, it is possible to also consider the implication of labelling these groups as deviant and outlaw, and how that grew from meaning non-conforming, into (organized) criminal groups. This helps to set the scene for each of the chapters to come, considering the social, the political, the policing and the membership of these groups.

Lauchs, Mark, Andy Bain and Peter Bell. Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs: A Theoretical Perspective. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. DOI: 10.1057/9781137456298.0004.

When the motorcycle was first introduced to the general public at the turn of the 20th century it was sold as being a reliable, fun and inexpensive form of transport which offered a sense of adventure (Austin, Gagne & Orend, 2010), an image which has remained popular throughout its history. The motorcycle provided a sense of individuality, reflective of the image of the lone cowboy forever chasing the sun (Carrington, 1999) and, throughout the years, brought with it an implied comradery of these riders who later formed the associations, groups and organizations found around the United States (US) and, later still, across the world.

However, poor road surfaces, an uncomfortable riding position and exposure to the elements also made it a risky adventure, which often excluded larger families and friends who did not ride. At the same time Henry Ford was building, and beginning to offer, a fast and reliable ‘motorized carriage’, which proved far more popular with families and businesses. The Model-T has been considered as the vehicle that changed the world, providing relatively cheap, comfortable and reliable family transportation (Merrill, Sharp & Usborne, 2008).

It is possible then that this combination of exposure, rise of a cheap form of ‘motorized carriage’ and the risk associated with the motorcycle may also have added to the stereotypical image of the motorcycle rider, characterized by Carrington (1999) as a lone rider, hardened by the open road, drifting through life akin to the outlaws of the American wild west of the 18th and 19th centuries and later popularized in American cinema and media. Yet this image is appropriate for only a small – but significant – number of riders. In this chapter we consider a number of important factors which have combined to inform our understanding of the outlaw motorcycle clubs. We examine the historical position of the outlaw clubs and how they have risen from single, isolated groups of individuals to national and international organizations with affiliations and associations throughout the world, and provide an explanation of why social and economic conditions may play an important role in membership in criminal and/or deviant motorcycle clubs. We offer this because it is important to contextualize the subject matter before considering further the implications of behaviour and how best to understand it and ultimately police it.

A short history of the motorcycle and motorcycle clubs

Although much of the history of the motorcycle and its association with outlaw clubs has been covered in other academic and biographic discussions (see for example Barker, 2005; Barker & Human, 2009; Grascia, 2004), it is still important to set out some of the conditions through which the outlaw motorcycle clubs formed and, as we begin to consider the rise and organization of these groups, it also provides a benchmark for assessing much of their action and motivation. In turn, this affords context for understanding the criminal involvement associated with these groups.

Indeed, Carrington (1999) reminds us that the US had been born out of adventure, with individuals willing to risk all in the pursuit of a better life with ‘freedom and liberty’ for all. Only decades before the introduction of the first motorcycles much of the Americas were still independent territories and it took an individual, an adventurer and a risk-taker to make their life in the harsh conditions which existed for many in the 19th century. In essence, there was a place for these individual risk-takers and adventurers which began to disappear as the country became civilized. Even in civility there remained a need for expression and individualization which could not be easily expressed in modern society. The motorcycle then may have provided such an outlet.

As noted previously, at the turn of the 20th century the motorcycle was portrayed to the American public as a vehicle of adventure, providing the thrill of the open road with friends, family and loved ones, an image which was fuelled by the notion of a cheap, reliable form of transport, not previously available to the mass population. It was an image easy to sell in a world with few opportunities for transport and which was supported further by the introduction of the motorcycle to local ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• 1  Introduction
• 2  History of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs
• 3  Organized Crime and Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs
• 4  Gang Theory and Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs
• 5  Policing Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs the One Percenters
• 6  Political Responses
• 7  Conclusion
• References
• Index