Bagley, B. M. a. n. W. O. W. I. e. (1996). Drug Trafficking in the Americas. Miami, FL: University of Miami.
Call Number: HV 5825 .D77693 1994
Abstract: An older yet information packed resource, with over 25 contributions from scholars in Latin America and the U.S. Provides an excellent overview of the political economy of drug trafficking. U.S. drug policy towards Latin America is covered along with numerous country and regional focused case studies and essays highlighting the international dimensions of drug trafficking. Very pertinent contributions on Mexico offer useful historical background into the current situation in that country.

Blatchford, C. (2008). "Ch 30: Boxer, Bat, and the Tijuana Drug Cartel" in the Black Hand. New York, NY: William Morrow.
Call Number: HV 6248 .E585 B55 2008
Abstract: Chapter elaborating the close involvement of the Mexican Mafia, or "La Eme," prison gang and the AFO Tijuana Drug Cartel with regard to drug operations and assassinations of individuals during the period spanning from the early 1990s to 2007. Documented connections show the symbiotic relationship that existed between the groups and the ease with which the Mexican Mafia was able to go "international."

Bowden, M. (2001). Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the World's Greatest Outlaw. New York , NY: Atlantic Monthly Press.
Call Number: HV 5805 .E82 B69 2001
Abstract: A riveting work, by the author of Black Hawk Down, which traces the life of Medellin cartel kingpin Pablo Escobar from his birth in 1948 to his death in 1989 at the hands of specialized Colombian police unit (Search Bloc) with operational support provided by the U.S. governmental agents. Of interest is the rise of Los Pepes (a vigilante movement), with ties to competing organized crime families and some national police personnel, who assassinated Medellin cartel members.

Brands, H. (2009) Mexico's Narco-Insurgency and U.S. Counter-Drug Policy [Web Page]. URL http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?pubID=918.
Abstract: An influential and somewhat controversial work that discusses Mexico's multi-sided narco-insurgency that has accelerated since 2006. Written by an academic from Yale University, the work is divided into sections on the narco-insurgency, the Merida Initiative, the way forward, and a conclusion. Focuses on the deeper structural problems that fuel the drug trade and drug-related violence in Mexico. The report is extremely well researched.

Brophy, S. (2008). Mexico: Cartels, Corruption and cocaine: A Profile of the Gulf Cartel. Global Crime, 9(3), 248-261.
Abstract: Provides an overview of the organization and functioning of the Gulf cartel, a powerful Mexican organized crime group, with operations throughout the United States and ties to street and prison gangs. The article contains an introduction and cartel history and short sections on the Zetas, cartel use of violence, co-opting law enforcement, tax collection, the effects of globalization on the cartel, its ability to harm the state, the institutional capacities of Mexico and the U.S., state responses, along with a conclusion.

Bunker, R. J. a. J. P. S. (1998). Cartel Evolution: Potentials and Consequences. Transnational Organized Crime, 2(2), 55-74.
Abstract: The article provides and overview of three envisioned drug cartel evolutionary forms; the first phase "Aggressive Competitor" (based on the Medellin model), the second phase "Subtle-Co-Opter" (based on the more successful Cali model), and a projected third phase "Criminal State Successor" (based on the Ciudad del Este model). Attributes pertaining to each phase of cartel evolution are discussed along with the potentials of drug cartels evolving into new war making entities capable of directly challenging nation-states.

Campbell, H. (2009). Drug War Zone: Frontline Dispatches from the Streets of El Paso and Juarez. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press.
Call Number: HV 5831 .M46 C36 2009
Abstract: An ethnographic approach to the drug wars with a focus on the narco-economy. Derived from long-term field research conducted by the author and his subsequent cultural immersion. The work is divided into sections coming from the smuggler and law enforcement personnel perspectives. Well researched and referenced yet easy to read.

Chepesiuk, R. (2003). Drug Lords: The Rise and Fall of the Cali Cartel. Wrea Green, UK: Milo Books Ltd.
Call Number: HV 5840 .C7 C44 2005
Outlines and discusses the creation, operations, and eventual dismantling of the Cali cartel. Led by its shadowy leaders--Filberto Rodriquez (the Chess Player), Miguel Rodriguez, Jose Santacruz, and Pacho Herrera--this highly successful organization was able to remain virtually unscathed for twenty years. While it survived its war against the Medellin cartel, it was eventually dismantled by means of ever-increasing Colombian and U.S. pressure in the 1990s.

Clawson, P. L. a. R. W. L. I. (1998). The Andean Cocaine Industry. New York, NY: St. Martin's Griffin.
Call Number: HV 5840 .A5 C58 1998
Abstract: A heavily documented and scholarly work with a new epilogue to the paperback edition. The work is divided into sections on cocaine basics, cocaine trafficking, the effects of cocaine on the Andes, U.S. counter-narcotics efforts in Latin America, and where do we go in the future. Lessons learned suggest that while narco-terrorists threatening a state such as Colombia, can be wiped out, the potential supply of drugs themselves are virtually unlimited in the source countries and Andean drug trafficking will continue.

Escobar Gaviria, R. a. D. F. (2009). The Accountant's Story: Inside the Violent World of the Medellin Cartel. New York, NY: Grand Central Publishers.
Call Number: HV 5805 .E82 E828 2009
Abstract: Memoir as related by Roberto Escobar, brother to famed drug lord Pablo Escobar and accountant for his criminal operations. The work offers some insights into the eternal workings of Escobar´s organization and highlights the privilege bought with the narco dollars he circulated throughout the political and social tiers of Colombian society.

Eskridge, C. W. (2001). The Mexican Cartels and their Integration into Mexican Sociopolitical Culture. Huntsville, TX: Office of International Criminal Justice, Inc.
Call Number: F 1236 .E74 2001
Abstract: Monograph from the Office of International Criminal Justice, Inc. An older resource succinctly covering the relationship between the ¨saturation¨ of the political system in Mexico by organized crime interests and the benevolent autocratic model of government which has become embedded in the Mexican political psyche over the last 120 years. The author points to two components of the problem--U.S. continued provision of markets and Mexico's lack of collective moral will--along with macro social values that emphasize market culture as key to understanding its intractability. He offers an interesting postscript regarding the potential advent of transnational organized crime as the new de facto "sovereigns of significance" in the world.

Fleming, G. R. (2008). Drug Wars: Narco Warfare in the 21st Century. Booksurge.com.
Call Number: HV 6433.8 .M4 F64 2008
Abstract: The book counterpart to the DVD Drug Wars: Silver or Lead.

Fleming, G. R. (2008). Drug Wars: Silver or Lead. I. Renavatio Productions (Producer)Waxahachie, TX.
Notes: Color. 81 minutes.
Call Number: A-V HV 6433.8 .M4 D784 2008
Abstract: The DVD portion of a combination producer's journal and video set which chronicles the drug war in Mexico. Produced as an investigative report concerning what is becoming a national security threat to the United States. Provides insights into street violence, lack of moral codes, and insurgent types of campaigns being waged by drug traffickers. Includes interviews conducted in Mexico. See also: "Drug Wars: Narco Warfare in the 21st Century."

Freese, K. (2005) The Death Cult of the Drug Lords: Mexico's Patron Saint of Crime, Criminals, and the Dispossessed. [Web Page]. URL http://elenemigocomun.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/death-cult-drug-lords.pdf.
Abstract: Foreign Military Studies Institute publication examining the origins and expansion of the cult of Santa Muerte in Mexico. Pinpoints concerns regarding the association of worship of this figure with the conduct of violent crimes and her following among major criminal organizations, particularly the Gulf Cartel and Mara Salvatrucha. The piece also indicates the expansion of this cult over the border into the U.S.

Fuss, Jr. C. M. (1996). Sea of Grass: The Maritime Drug War 1970-1990. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press.
Call Number: HV 5825 .F87 1996
Abstract: Chronicles the twenty-year effort conducted by small U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs craft that forced large-scale maritime drug smuggling operations to cease. These maritime smuggling routes, predominantly though not exclusively marijuana focused, were found in both the western and eastern United States. The work provides an insider's view of the U.S. sea-interdiction capabilities that were developed. Further, it provides context for the shifting of drug trafficking routes overland into the U.S. through Mexico.

Gugliotta, G. a. J. L. (1989). Kings of Cocaine: Inside the Medellin Cartel. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Call Number: HV 5840 .C7 G84 1989
Abstract: A celebrated work that provides an overview of the western hemispheric operations of the Medellin Cartel, a cocaine trafficking organization, and the activities of its various leaders including Pablo Escobar, Carlos Lehder, Jose Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha, and the Ochoa brothers from the 1970s to 1988. Easy to read, well-researched, and contains pictures and an index.

Jordan, D. G. (1999). Drug Politics: Dirty Money and Democracies. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press.
Call Number: HV 5801 .J66 1999
Abstract: Written by a former U.S. ambassador to Peru, the work focuses on governmental complicity and corruption in the support of drug trafficking groups. Instances of such corruption in Latin America, Mexico, the U.S., and Russia are highlighted. Further, arguments are made that many national and international financial systems are now dependent on drug revenues in order to function. This work raises many questions pertaining to the co-option of governments by drug cartels and mafias and the resulting threat to the Democratic stability of states.

Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy. (2009) Drugs and Democracy: Toward A Paradigm Shift. Final Report 2009 [Web Page]. URL http://www.drogasedemocracia.org/English/.
Abstract: A controversial report produced by a commission of respected former Latin America officials. Arguments are made that the U.S. 'war on drugs' is a failure and that its ensuing policies are resulting in '...enormous human and social costs and threats to democratic institutions.' An open debate to reevaluate current U.S. backed policies is called for along with the promotion of a new paradigm promoted is also made in this work by the commission.

Lee, R. W. (1989). The White Labyrinth: Cocaine Trafficking and Political Power in the Andean Countries. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.
Call Number: HV 5840 .A5 L44 1989
Abstract: Study produced for the Foreign Policy Research Institute on South American cocaine industry as it evolved in the 1980s. The work discusses the characteristics of the coca trade, the coca lobbies and cocaine mafia that supported it, connections to guerrilla organizations (primarily FARC), the factors preventing enforcement. The general conclusion reached is that the economic dependence on narco dollars from the cocaine industry, powerful narcotics lobbies, weak political systems, and porous systems of criminal justice evidenced in the Andea countries studied made a supply-side approach to the cocaine problem complex and arduous, if not impossible. Some discussion of pros and cons of U.S. demand-side potentialities is offered in the concluding chapter.

Lustig, B. e. a. Drug Wars: The Camarena Story. 2003 (1990): Artisan Home Entertainment.
Call Number: PN 1995.9 .D78 D89 2003
Notes: Color. 130 Minutes.
Abstract: DVD reenacting the events surrounding the 1985 kidnapping, torture, and murder of DEA agent Enrique Camarena and the subsequent investigation into those responsible. The film highlights the difficulties surrounding a U.S. agency's attempt to carry out such an investigation due to both political sensitivities involved as well as the pervasive corruption within the Mexican government and police forces.

Manwaring, M. G. (2009) A "New" Dynamic in the Western Hemisphere Security Environment: The Mexican Zetas and Other Private Armies [Web Page]. URL http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pdffiles/PUB940.pdf.
Abstract: Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) publication presenting a matrix approach to the new dynamic which has been introduced into the Mexican internal security environment by the increasing migration of power into the hands of private nonstate military organizations such as the Zetas. The matrix elements include the historical context of weak and/or corrupt state security institutions in Mexico, the orientation and motivations as well as linkages of these nonstate military groups, the consequences these have had on Mexican state sovereignty in terms of over 233 "Zones of Impunity" (e.g. the Zetas and the State of Sinaloa), and recommendations addressing the resulting threats faced by Mexico and its neighbors over the next several years.

National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC). (URL http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/.
Abstract: Governmental entity focusing on "...strategic drug-related intelligence, document, and computer exploitation support, and training assistance.." in support of U.S. counter-drug activities. The website for research purposes provides invaluable documentation and mapping information via the NDIC Publications and Dynamic Mapping Initiative subsections. Most relevant in this regard are the National Drug Threat Assessment, the National Gang Threat Assessment, and Cities in Which Mexican DTOs Operate within the United States. Law enforcement personnel will also benefit from many of the other products and services offered via this website.

Pacheco, F. C. (2009). Narcofearance: How has Narcoterrorism Settled in Mexico? Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, 32, 1021-1048.
Abstract: Article detailing the ways in which narcoviolence has been transformed into narcoterrorism in Mexico. The cartels are seen as continually undergoing a process of organizational evolution. The author cites evidence supporting the contention that Mexican drug cartels, gangs, and professional criminal groups systematically use terrorist techniques in a strategy to instill fear, not only in their direct enemies, but also in Mexican society at large. Current Mexican plans at addressing this threat are reviewed and critiqued.

Poppa, T. E. (1998). Drug Lord: The Life and Death of a Mexican Kingpin. Seattle, WA: Demand Publications.
Call Number: HV 5805 .A25 P67 1998
Abstract: Examines the life, career, and death of Pablo Acosta--an infamous poly-drug (marijuana, heroin, and cocaine) kingpin allowed to operate the Ojinaga franchise by corrupt Mexican state and federal officials in the late 1970s in return for a large share of the profits. Of significance is Acosta's mentoring of Amado Carrillo Fuentes (Lord of the Skies) and his early drug trafficking organization's use of only blood relatives and long time family and business friends as a counter-measure to its being penetrated.

Wald, E. (2001). Narcocorrido: A Journey into the Music of Drugs, Guns, and Guerrillas. New York, NY: Rayo.
Call Number: ML 3570 .W35 2001x
Abstract: A travel dialogue concerning narcocorridos, ballads of the drug traffickers, based upon field research conducted in 1999 in Mexico and the southwestern United States. The work provides important cultural insights into what can be considered modern outlaw music--which is banned from playing on radio stations in numerous Mexican states. Of note is Los Angeles' role as the hub of this music industry in the United States.

Willoughby, R. (2003). Crouching Fox, Hidden Eagle: Drug Trafficking and Transnational Security--A Perspective from the Tijuana-San Diego Border.". Crime, Law and Social Change, 40(1), 113-142.
Abstract: Analyzes Mexican drug trafficking and the threat it has become to the Mexican state and underlying society. The Mexican state is no longer viewed as being able to manage corruption and the relationship of the cartels to the state have shifted from one of subordination and cooperation to one of dominance over and intimidation of the Mexican state, its institutions, and its agents. Historical background pertaining to counter-insurgency in Afghanistan and Colombia is also touched upon and the need for an Italian anti-mafia-like campaign in Mexico is mentioned.

Compiled by Dr. Robert J. Bunker and Pamela L. Bunker, 1/10