Summary

This article examines the limitations of Mexico’s “kingpin strategy” of targeting senior cartel leaders as a means of reducing organized crime and violence. The authors argue that removing individual leaders can contribute to cartel fragmentation, competition, and further violence while leaving the underlying conditions that sustain criminal organizations unchanged. They propose a broader structural approach that addresses factors including corruption, weak institutions, criminal recruitment, territorial control, extortion, firearms trafficking, and illicit financial flows. The article also highlights the importance of cross-border cooperation between Mexico and the United States and calls for violence-reduction strategies that prioritize community safety, public health, and reductions in violence, disappearance, extortion, and impunity.