Denunciation and the Illusion of Social Control: The Case of the Nevada Black Book |
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| Authors: | Carole Case Ronald A. Farrell |
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| Affiliation: | Carole Case is an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Ronald A. Farrell is a professor of criminal justice and Interim Director of the School of Social Work, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The authors wish to acknowledge the helpful comments of the editors and anonymous reviewers of Law and Sod Inquiry. |
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| Abstract: | In Nevada, individuals me excluded from entering licensed casinos when their names have been listed by state regulatory bodies in what is popularly known as the Black Book. As a state regulatory procedure, Nevada's Black Book is officially aimed at excluding organized crime figures from the gaming industry. Beyond its manifest function, however, we believe that the drama of entering persons' names into the Black Book symbolically affirms the legitimacy of gaming and the efficacy of its regulatory body against perceived threats to the industry. Application of the procedure solely to the southern part of the state—Las Vegas— and chiefly to Italians reflects the group interests, culture conflicts, and stereotypes that underlie regulation of gaming. Central issues explored are the relationships of perceived threats to the origin and implementation of the Black Book; the perceptions of threat to the industry as emanating from those most alien to established groups; the sharp distinctions between the ethnic origins of the regulators and of those selected for inclusion in the Book; and the dramatization of the disreputability of those whose names are entered. |
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