Human Rights Watch's World Report 2013 paints a grim picture of the state of human rights in Mexico, detailing widespread abuses committed by security forces in the fight against organized crime and a pervasive climate of impunity.

A new report from a Mexico consulting firm on organized crime-related killings in November -- the final month of former President Felipe Calderon's term -- describes an increase in these types of homicides across the country, with one significant exception.

A new report on border security in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras suggests that for all its ills, organized crime has brought some economic benefits to impoverished communities, who may take a hostile view of any state-led security surge. 

A new study suggests that Mexico's drug cartels could take big hits to their pocketbooks if ballot initiatives to legalize marijuana in parts of the United States are approved by voters, but the overall effect on the country's security situation would likely be limited. 

A new report finds that Latin Americans are more likely to support hardline anti-crime policies if there is a strong perception that their country struggles with corruption. This contradicts the assumption that support for the "iron fist" approach is mainly linked to concerns about insecurity.

Reporters Without Borders has said that the biggest threat to press freedom in Honduras is powerful landowner Miguel Facusse Barjum, though the allegations do not stop there -- Facusse has been accused of ties to the drug trade, and of waging a violent campaign against land activists.

A report on child recruitment by Colombia's criminal groups draws attention to the prevalence of the tactic across the region, as gangs exploit a low-cost, low-risk, and highly expendable source of manpower.

A GlobalPost report sheds light on the crisis in Latin America's prisons, highlighting several alarming trends in prisons throughout the region.

The kidnapping of migrants who travel through Mexico on their way to the United States has become a “systematic and generalized” practice by organized crime groups such as the Zetas, who demand ransom payments from families or recruit them into their ranks, according to a new report.

A new report released by the International Assessment and Strategy Center (IASC) highlights the role of specialized intermediaries, many of whom have connections to several illicit groups at once, in facilitating transnational crime.