Differentiating Between Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMCGs): Estimating the Effect of Membership of the Most Crime-Prone OMCGs on Crime Using Matching Weights

Abstract

Outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMCGs) are increasingly viewed as societal menace. Prior research corroborates concerns about OMCGs by showing that many outlaw bikers have a criminal record for various—at times serious–types of offenses (Blokland et al., 2019 ; Klement, 2016 ; Rostami & Mondani, 2019 ; Van Deuren et al., 2021 ). From a theoretical point of view, OMCGs appear to occupy somewhat of a middle-ground between street gangs and organized crime groups (Von Lampe & Blokland, 2020 ). Like street gangs, OMCGs are durable, street orientated associations, whose members engage in criminal activity, such as violence and damaging offenses (Klein & Maxson, 2006 ). Unlike street gang members, however, OMCG members tend to be adults (Blokland et al., 2019 ; Klement, 2016 ). Some OMCGs have also been found to engage in serious and organized crimes, such as the manufacturing and trafficking of drugs, extortion, and racketeering (Barker, 2015 ; Quinn & Koch, 2003 ; Von Lampe & Blokland, 2020 ), making them resemble organized crime groups rather than juvenile street gangs in this respect (Lauchs et al., 2015 ).