CAMARENA'S GHOST: STATE COMPLICITY, NARRATIVE CONTROL, AND THE MEXICAN DRUG WAR

CAMARENA'S GHOST: STATE COMPLICITY, NARRATIVE CONTROL, AND THE MEXICAN DRUG WAR | Zenodo Skip to main Communities My dashboard Log in Sign up California State University, Fullerton Theses & Dissertations Published April 13, 2026 | Version v1 Thesis Open CAMARENA'S GHOST: STATE COMPLICITY, NARRATIVE CONTROL, AND THE MEXICAN DRUG WAR Authors/Creators Foley, Sammie Contributors Supervisor (3): Neufeld, Stephen Janssen, Volker Granata, Cora Description This thesis analyzes the 1985 brutal abduction and murder of DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena as a deep moment in the Mexican state’s relationship to the drug war. Camarena’s murder became a moral turning point that pushed collaboration between the United States and Mexico. This research challenges the idea that the case simply exposed institutional corruption between the Mexican state and argues that it created a well-thought-out narrative control. Using legal cases, declassified intelligence assessments, congressional hearings, journalistic investigations, and cultural formation, this thesis explores how Camarena’s murder exposed the involvement of Mexican security organizations, specifically the DFS, in narco-trafficking, as the state attempted reforms and accountability. This study will first explore the idea that Camarena’s murder exposed a deep institutional crisis within the Mexican state, legitimizing how drug trafficking is hidden behind state power and negotiated protection. Second, his murder strengthened the militarization of Mexican drug policy, legitimizing deeper military relationships and expanding United States influence under the framing of preserved sovereignty and order. Lastly, the legal proceedings, media narratives, and commemorative practices associated with his murder expose a strategic effort to shift the blame onto individual traffickers while suppressing broader means of corruption. This thesis challenges the understanding of the drug war as a moral war between law and criminality. It challenges how Camarena's martyrdom established a celebratory narrative of moral reform that protected the institutions that allowed his murder. Files 14 2026-04-12b Foley Thesis FINAL.pdf Files (523.4 kB) Name Size Download all 14 2026-04-12b Foley Thesis FINAL.pdf md5:f89f768ffd1c325d3fb0d7672aa260b2 523.4 kB Preview Download 53 Views 109 Downloads Show more details All versions This version Views Total views 53 53 Downloads Total downloads 109 109 Data volume Total data volume 61.2 MB 61.2 MB More info on how stats are collected.... Versions External resources Indexed in OpenAIRE Communities Keywords and subjects Keywords Camarena Mexican drug war PRI DEA militarization Details DOI DOI Badge DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19547131 Markdown [](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19547131) reStructuredText .. image:: https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19547131.svg :target: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19547131 HTML <a href="https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19547131"><img src="https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19547131.svg" alt="DOI"></a> Image URL https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19547131.svg Target URL https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19547131 Resource type Thesis Publisher Zenodo Thesis California State University, Fullerton Languages English Rights License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International The Creative Commons Attribution license allows re-distribution and re-use of a licensed work on the condition that the creator is appropriately credited. Read more Citation Export Technical metadata Created April 13, 2026 Modified April 13, 2026 Jump up About About Policies Infrastructure Principles Projects Roadmap Contact Blog Blog Support Help FAQ Developers REST API OAI-PMH Contribute GitHub Donate Funded by Powered by CERN Data Centre & InvenioRDM Status Privacy policy Cookie policy Terms of Use This site uses cookies. Find out more on how we use cookies Accept all cookies Accept only essential cookies

Related documents

• Counterfeit Drugs: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly#219808
• A Chronicle of Jails#57292
• Demonic Foes: My Twenty-Five Years as a Psychiatrist Investigating Possessions, Diabolic Attacks, and the Paranormal#731015
• Italian Prisons St. Angelo; the Piombi; the Vicaria; Prisons of the Roman Inquisition#55235
• Entre ruptura y continuidad: de la exégesis a la libre investigación científica, pasando por Raymond Saleilles#463797