New Gods of North America.

Chapter 652 Laws
The most efficient and direct way to deal with the Sailors' Gang is to have the agents find an opportunity to act covertly.

If Wayne were to personally orchestrate the plan, it wouldn't be impossible for him to create a mysterious case that no one would want to investigate—the detective agency might even be asked to assist in solving it, and then it would truly be a case of "I'm investigating myself."

Taking the initiative to wipe out the gang is certainly not a bad thing, and since Wayne was ambushed first, it's understandable from a logical standpoint.
However, such a practice would be somewhat procedurally illegal on the East Coast. It would also be taboo for the Church for Extraordinary individuals to use organized violence against ordinary people. Richmond felt that there were cunning old foxes everywhere. Even if the case could not be solved, it did not mean that they could not guess who did it.

We don't want to end up doing things perfectly, only to attract a lot of overt and covert suspicion and attention to the detective agency; that would be counterproductive.

Local intelligence agencies haven't been bothering the detective agency lately, but the previous incidents were far from pleasant. Just being found a legitimate reason to be officially targeted by them was definitely not a comfortable experience.

Furthermore, Wayne always had more faith in the character and fighting prowess of "good guys." The two monks from the church were a ready-made example; when outnumbered, they didn't abandon their comrades and desert, they didn't even flinch.

The detective agency is now developing in this direction, and Inessa is a good example in this regard. The other two partners are also harmless. The agents have a solid foundation, and although they are a bit of a motley crew, they are not thuggish.

They influence each other, which is a positive cycle. But before indulging in reckless behavior, one should wait until the foundation is solid.
They've worked so hard to erect this memorial archway; even if they were to sell it, they should sell it for a good price. There's no reason to waste it on a mere sailor's gang.

Unfortunately, in the United States these days, the law doesn't typically prosecute gang members without concrete evidence of their involvement in a case. Unless the gang leader personally leads an all-out attack, taking them all down in one fell swoop is quite difficult.
The dock area is a complex and multifaceted place, and if Wayne were to suddenly eliminate a gang, it would be difficult to avoid attracting attention, even if Wayne was in the right.

So Wayne decided to go big.

You like watching, right? Then I'll just throw out a "flashbang" and let you see as much as you want.

Don't just focus on the detective agency.

……

That afternoon, Quinn, the tax officer who was about to leave work, was cornered and forced back into his office by Wayne.
He took a copy of an old file from Wayne's hand, his expression a mixture of amusement and exasperation: "The Dock Construction Ordinance? How did you manage to dig that up? This ordinance dates back almost to the early days of the Federation!"

Wayne hadn't expected such a thing to exist.

Originally, in order to persuade Tax Officer Quinn, Wayne had already prepared a draft of a "Special Tax Act."

However, after arriving at the city hall, he first went to the archives. He originally only wanted to find a ready-made city ordinance as a reference to revise the wording and listen to Ms. Susan chat about some gossip. However, Ms. Susan took a quick look and felt that the content of Wayne's draft seemed familiar, so she found the copy.

Back when the United States was first established, Virginia's capital was Georgeburg. Perhaps people at the time felt that Georgeburg had too much of a Windsor feel, so the capital was moved to Richmond.

Richmond back then was far less developed than it is now, and the dock area only expanded to its current size after many years of continuous construction.

Construction means spending money, especially for this once young new capital city, which also had to represent the nascent Union of America and strive to surpass the once-prosperous Georgeburg. The pressure was even greater. In addition to financial support from the state government, Richmond also issued city ordinances to raise more funds.

Some of the clauses were exactly what Wayne wanted to hear, such as "organizations and individuals that profit more than a certain amount from the operation of the existing docks are obligated to pay the city hall usage fees for the construction and maintenance of the docks."

Wayne specifically pointed out a few clauses, "Mr. Quinn, these clauses should still be valid, right?"

Tax Officer Quinn seemed slightly confused, but still answered Wayne's question:
"The usage fee for the dock has actually been levied by a new, more specific law. After all, the city has been developing, and the amount and method of apportionment have changed several times. However, this law does not seem to have been officially repealed. Some of its provisions have been partially replaced by a new, more detailed law, and the remaining provisions, although no longer enforced, are still theoretically valid."

That makes things much easier, and saves us the trouble of figuring out how to get the new law passed by the city council.

After finishing his sentence, Tax Officer Quinn handed the copy back while reaching into the file box, asking, "What specific question did you bring this to me for?"

Wayne tried to keep it short: "Our detective agency has recently been helping with the plague investigation in the dock area and discovered that many gangs actually have quite substantial incomes. I remember discussing this with you before, and you said that with the current city tax laws and police resources, it would be difficult to collect taxes on illegal income, which I think makes a lot of sense—but what if we only targeted gangs of a certain size? Would that be feasible?"

Quinn, the tax officer, seemed to be deep in thought. "Hmm... many gangs actually pay license fees regularly for their normal business operations. If we only consider usage fees, the amount might not be high..." Wayne had already thought about this issue in advance: "Considering the negative impact of gangs on urban security, if we trace the usage fees back to the beginning of the gangs' establishment, or back to the date the law was officially promulgated, with so many gangs in the dock area, the total amount might not be small."

"More importantly, some gangs are clearly occupying properties not in their names, some may be concealing sales figures for certain goods, and some are even suspected of being involved in smuggling, directly involving federal tariffs, as well as state ad valorem taxes or specific commodity taxes. You certainly know more about the cargo throughput in the dock area than I do, and this part may be worth even more."

Tax officer Quinn stroked the handle of the filing box. "Taxing those gangs might not be an easy task... at least my tax collectors probably won't be able to collect any."

These days, local governments in the United States mainly use three models to collect taxes, with the first two being the easiest to handle.
First, there are franchise taxes and fees, which people need to pay themselves at the relevant government departments before opening their businesses. Government officials can just wait in their offices.

Secondly, there are the municipal usage fees, market stall fees, ferry crossing fees, etc., which are collected either by someone going door-to-door or by setting up collection points in places like ports or markets. The corresponding amounts are basically fixed, requiring a little effort but not much thought.

The most troublesome are property taxes and specific commodity taxes. Property taxes are levied based on the value of land, houses, and slaves owned by an individual. Specific commodity taxes are further subdivided. For example, some out-of-state goods resold within the state are subject to a proportional ad valorem tax, while retail alcohol and similar items are subject to special taxes based on sales volume.
When Quinn, the tax officer, said that it was "not easy to collect," he was actually referring to this part—customs duties also fall into this category, but it is something that federal customs has to deal with. It is not a local tax and does not go directly into the pockets of the state government or city hall.

The collection of these types of taxes requires tax officials to conduct value assessments or audits, which is both time-consuming and prone to errors.
It is clear that local tax collectors find it difficult to get gangsters to cooperate in this regard; the ideal is beautiful, but the reality is harsh.

However, Wayne just happens to be a capable and enthusiastic person:

"Combating gangs is a way to build prestige, and the extra taxes collected can be used for city development, benefiting all citizens."

“If we only target the gangs in the dock area, the city hall might think this approach is feasible, and our detective agency would be happy to provide voluntary assistance. In any case, this part of the tax has never been levied on gangs before, so no matter how much we can collect, it won't be a bad thing.”

Tax Officer Quinn had put down his filing case, pondered for a moment, then sat back down in his chair, grabbed a pen and paper, and began scribbling and calculating.
His pen stopped after producing a certain number of figures. "Hmm... this suggestion is worth considering, but unfortunately, it's not something I can decide. Wayne, would you mind coming with me tomorrow to report to the mayor? Some council members might also want to know the situation after receiving the news."

Wayne has no need for promotion or to gain experience at City Hall, and Miss Harley has also mentioned that Tax Officer Quinn is considering a possible job change.
“I would be happy to. However, as you know, I have recently encountered a lot of troubles and it is not appropriate for me to be publicly involved in other matters.”

“I think this suggestion should be formally made by a professional like yourself. With your understanding of the local area and your expertise in taxation, you would certainly be far more persuasive than a private investigator like me.”

Tax Officer Quinn hesitated slightly: "Is this a good idea?"

Wayne nodded. "If this matter is in your hands, our detective agency will do its best to assist you. At least you don't need to worry about that."

When it comes to taxes and finances, given Wayne's understanding of the United States, many people would probably prioritize money.

Even if some gentlemen have secret financial ties with gangsters, normally their profits would be divided periodically, not always uniformly—given their different statuses, it's impossible for everyone to be so closely connected.

If they could extract another sum from the gang, then some of the scores between them might become "unresolved".

Some of these collaborations might crack, and certain gang leaders might even find their husbands an eyesore because of it.

If the detective agency then chooses another charge to take action, it might become something those gentlemen would welcome or have no intention of interfering with.

If we can muddy the waters, the detective agency won't stand out so much.
In any case, Wayne already knows that the Sailors have at least taken over a distillery and doesn't believe they will honestly pay the full amount of taxes. If this matter can be pushed forward, then the Sailors will be the first target.

—According to the history Wayne knew from his previous life, in the days before the crime of "organized crime" existed, gangs were most likely to be brought down by tax issues.

First, arrest them on charges, then interrogate them in detail. Ideally, you should also subtly suggest a plea bargain to get gang members to implicate each other and take the fall.
Even if some gang members are spared prosecution, their morale will be shattered. Even if they want to continue in the underworld, such gangs are likely to be wiped out by other gangs first.

Who would believe that a place with so many extraordinary immigrants wouldn't have any smuggling or tax evasion by its gangs?

(End of this chapter)