ABSTRACT
Not all crime prevention measures are formalised or endorsed. When the state is complicit or turns a blind eye to criminal violence, it creates a vacuum for other actors to fill in order to control it. This has been the case in the Mexican state of Michoacán, where self-defence groups have emerged to protect their communities. Assessing the role of informal crime control and how it can interact with the criminal justice system, this chapter explores alternative crime prevention strategies through a case study of these self-defence groups in Michoacán state. This chapter considers the emergence of the self-defence groups and the creation of an alternative ‘criminal justice system’ based on community values in order to protect their territories from what is considered a threat to the well-being of the michoacanos. The chapter will reflect on the benefits, limitations and challenges to vigilantism as a rural ‘police’ force.
