What the Heck Is the Mexican Mafia?

How a Gang Neglected by Wardens Made It Big Outside Prison Walls

In California, there are individuals who have been tried, convicted, and sentenced to prison—and gained significant power from behind bars. The sanctions of imprisonment have become the source of their strength and proof of the limits of government sanctions.

That’s the story of the Mexican Mafia.

Today, the gang is mentioned over and over in reports of crime and the prisons, but often without any context, or background. So public ignorance is broad. The Mexican Mafia is not from Mexico and it’s not like the Italian Mafia. It is, instead, a …