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Abstract:
Most analysts explain the persistence of organized crime in Russia as a result of corrupt government officials who protect major crime bosses and hinder law enforcement attempts to investigate and prosecute criminal organizations. Although official corruption is undoubtedly a major factor, such analyses ignore other, no less important, obstacles, many of which are embedded in the Russian legal system itself. This article examines various gaps in Russian law, such as inadequate mechanisms for introducing wiretap evidence and cooperating witness testimony in court proceedings, which hinder the investigation and prosecution of organized crime in Russia.
Key words: criminal procedure, operational search activity, organized crime, Russian criminal law
Most analysts explain the persistence of organized crime in Russia as a result of corrupt government officials who protect major crime bosses and hinder law enforcement attempts to investigate and prosecute criminal organizations. Although official corruption is undoubtedly a major factor, such analyses ignore other, no less important, obstacles, many of which are embedded in the Russian legal system itself. Beginning with the passage of the Organized Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, the United States has developed a complex legal structure which, by providing law enforcement with the tools needed to investigate and prosecute organized crime, has resulted in the weakening of La Cosa Nostra. Russia, however, lacks corresponding laws.
On the basis of the U.S. experience, Kenneth Lowrie, deputy chief of the United States Department of Justice Organized Crime and Racketeering section, has identified five elements necessary to an effective antiorganized crime program. These are (1) criminal statutes that allow for the prosecution of a criminal enterprise as a whole, (2) laws that allow for the use of confidential informants and undercover operations, (3) laws that facilitate the use of cooperating witness testimony in court proceedings, (4) laws that permit electronic surveillance and the use of wiretap evidence in court proceedings, and (5) an effective witness protection program.1 A comparative analysis of relevant Russian laws in light of these elements reveals that Russia's legal base is woefully inadequate to combat organized crime and is likely as much of an obstacle to the eradication of organized crime in Russia as is official corruption.
Enterprise Theory of Prosecution
The U.S. Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations...