Book review: Jeff Ferrell, Drift: Illicit Mobility and Uncertain Knowledge
| Date | 01 August 2019 |
| DOI | 10.1177/1362480619849735 |
| Published date | 01 August 2019 |
| Author | Avi Brisman |
| Subject Matter | Book reviews |
446 Theoretical Criminology 23(3)
lower levels of violence due to the cohesiveness of security apparatus in Tijuana and
more insourcing of violence.
The book provides a wide-ranging conclusion where the multi-dimensional under-
standing developed throughout the book is clearly linked up to the contemporary policy
landscape. Durán-Martínez points to the need to adopt metrics that allow for a broader
assessment of violence; as well as the need to constantly monitor situations of relative
peace as they rest on unstable institutional arrangements and may hide increasing but
hidden violence. In the introductory pages, Durán-Martínez dedicates the book to one of
her murdered informants: Javier Valdez Cárdenas, a courageous Mexican journalist
gunned down in Culiacán in 2017. In her conclusion, the author poignantly stresses that
the cost for the local community is always highest. This entails a need to tailor law
enforcement strategies to the local context and to spend resources on prevention pro-
grammes that aim to limit recruitment of youth into criminal gangs.
In the conclusion, the author also connects her empirical and analytical findings to the
ongoing struggle of dealing with drug violence. Particularly useful is the unpacking of
legalization as a strategy invested with much somewhat utopian aspiration: she explains
that as a mitigating strategy, legalization could reduce income generated from the drug
sale, but would also depend on—for example—the robustness of taxation schemes,
enforcement and state involvement versus more privatized approaches. Importantly,
legalization takes place on a scale ranging from full legalization to depenalizaton.
Different drugs are differently regulated: while taboos with respect to softer drugs may
be receding, policy innovation with respect to the regulation of hard drugs still remains
a highly controversial topic. Yet, legalization may have a beneficial effect on reducing
prison populations, save expenses in criminal justice and through changing public dis-
course opening the way for policy innovation which may be good for the region in the
medium to the long term.
Finally, Durán-Martínez begins to reflect on the broader comparative value of her
analysis. While this reflection is barely developed, it must be hoped that the author of this
well-crafted volume will bring her extensive knowledge to the table in future compara-
tive work.
Note
1. In terms of GDP as measured by the purchasing power parity index. ITAM Seminar, Remarks
by Ángel Gurría, OECD Secretary-General, Global and Mexico Economic Outlook 2018, 13
January 2018, Mexico City, Mexico. Available at: http://www.oecd.org/mexico/global-and
-mexico-economic-outlook-2018.htm.
Jeff Ferrell, Drift: Illicit Mobility and Uncertain Knowledge, University of California Press: Oakland,
CA, 2018; 280 pp.: 9780520295551, $29.95 (pbk)
Reviewed by: Avi Brisman, Eastern Kentucky University, USA
In Population 436, the 2006 mystery-horror film starring Fred Durst (best known as the
vocalist for Limp Bizkit), residents of the remote and seemingly idyllic village of
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