Mafia Ranks

## Associates

Associates are not actual members of the Mafia, but they work for the Mafia. Rather anyone who teams up with them on a criminal enterprise of some kind. They could be someone who does business with the Mafia and someone who is a Hitman for the mafia, and commit crimes on behalf of the mafia including murder, assault, arson, assassinations, drive-by shooting, contract killing, witness intimidation, jury intimidation, killing jurors, Car bombing, and bombing buildings and houses, and other criminal and organized crime activities etc. There are also the Italian newcomers who have yet to be made, called cugines, and they play a minor role in the operation of the Mafia. Associates can not turn down an order from the Mafia, if the Mafia gives them an order they have to follow it, and they are on call to serve the Mafia 24 hours every day. they are also fair game on the streets, they are not protected by the organization, unless they are a very important and valuable to the Mafia. Anybody can be an associate in the mafia, however only Italians and Sicilians can be made.

## Soldiers

The lowest-ranking members of the hierarchy of the Mafia are the soldiers, the grunts of the organization who do the majority of the work, making deliveries, picking up cash, committing murder, assault, bombing, arson, assassinations, drive-by shootings, witness intimidation, killing jurors, bribing Law Enforcement, Politicians, Government Officials, and Federal Agents for the Mafia, and generally sticking out their neck in the hope of making a name for themselves by demonstrating their loyalty to the organization, and protecting the organization at all costs. Children as young as sixteen have been admitted.

## Caporegimes

The capo, or caporegime, is the captain or lieutenant of a division within the Mafia. The Captains heads a large crew of anywhere from 20-1,500 soldiers, and can order them to do anything, such as murder, assault, bombing, arson, assassinations, drive-by shootings, picking up cash, making deliveries, and other violent criminal activities and organized crime activities. The captains reports directly to a boss or underboss, who hands down the instructions. He ranks much higher in the hierarchy of the Mafia. He is also in charge of handling most money.

## Consigliere

The consigliere, or chief advisor, is the Bosses right-hand man. The Consigliere is not officially part of the hierarchy of the Mafia, but he plays one of the most important roles in a crime family. He is the close trusted friend and confidant of the family boss. The function of the consigliere is a throwback to medieval times, when a monarch placed his trust in an advisor whom he could summon for strategic information and sound advice. The consigliere is meant to offer unbiased information based on what he sees as best for the family. He’s not supposed to factor emotional concerns, such as retaliation and blood feuds, into his decisions. Unlike the underboss (see below), the consigliere is not required to be a direct relative of the boss. Instead, he is chosen solely for his abilities and the amount of knowledge he possesses. Generally, only the boss and underboss have more authority than the consigliere in an organized crime family.

## Underboss

The underboss, or capo bastone, is second-in-command in the hierarchy of the Mafia crime family. His level of authority varies from family to family, but he is ready to stand in for the boss at any given moment. In the violent, brutal, ruthless, deadly, dangerous and volatile world of the Italian-American Mafia, the underboss can easily find himself at the helm of the family so, for the most part, they are usually groomed for an eventual takeover, particularly if the boss’s health is failing or if it looks like he’s headed for a long sentence in prison. A family may have two underbosses. An example of this was boss Carlo Gambino, who had Paul "Big Paul" Castellano and Aniello "Mr. Neil" Dellacroce as underboss at the same time. However, one underboss is far more common.

## Boss

The Boss, the Don, or capo famiglia, is head of the entire organization, the boss is a dictator and has the power to order anything from anyone in the organization. The Boss makes all the important decisions, much like a CEO of a company would. Although each mob boss may run his outfit in a very different way, they have one thing in common: they are greatly respected and widely feared by their subordinates. All of the men in his outfit pay him a tribute, so he is also usually an extremely rich man. Most bosses of the Italian-American Mafia are Multi-Billionaires, and even a few mob bosses we're nearly Trillionaire's such as Carlo Gambino, Sam Giancana, and Lucky Luciano. The Bosses are virtually invincible and untouchable. All bosses are incredibly powerful, influential, successful, extremely ruthless, extremely dangerous and universally feared. More commonly, the word "Don" may proceed his first or last name.

## Godfather

Godfather also known as (The Boss of all Bosses) or (The King) It is a phrase used mainly by the media, public and the law enforcement community to indicate a supremely powerful crime boss in the Sicilian or American Mafia who holds great influence over the whole empire. It has seldom been given to specific bosses because it could create tension between different factions (otherwise known as families) within the Mafia. Typically the title is awarded de facto to the boss of the most powerful Mafia family.

## References

* http://mafia.wikia.com/wiki/Ranks,\_Titles\_and\_Positions\_In\_The\_Mafia