Distrusting outside law enforcement, some Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, have turned to a small group of men for protection and justice. Premiering Thursday, March 21 at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on Discovery, AMISH MAFIA gives viewers a rare look at this community and the men tasked with maintaining its peace, order, and protection. The 2006 shootings at an Amish school in Lancaster County – during which five young Amish girls were killed and five more seriously injured by a non-Amish milk truck driver – revealed the community’s vulnerabilities and need for protection. 
Despite the buggies, bonnets, and simplicity that characterizes the historic Amish settlement of Lancaster, protection and peace can come at a price. Lebanon Levi is the Amish insider who serves as protector of the community, for a price. He lives above the law, and acts as police, judge, and jury. Levi’s team engages in a life outside of Amish and non-Amish community codes, quietly exerting influence and control. Levi’s brand of order is precise: he keeps outside forces from infiltrating the Amish community, while keeping the prevailing principles and morality in check.
Alvin is Levi’s right-hand man and nobody gets to Levi without going through Alvin first. A lifelong friend, at first glance Alvin would seem to be an average Amish community member. But he has a dark side – and Levi’s complete trust. Other group members include Jolin, a Mennonite who serves as Levi’s foot soldier. As a non-Amish member of the group, Jolin has the freedom to carry out punishments of all levels against offenders. The youngest member of the group is John, the son of the late former protector who maintained peace in the community for many years before Levi took power. John struggles with his desire to follow in his father’s footsteps and take Levi’s place as the head of the group.
This is a side of Amish society that exists under the radar, and the Amish church denies the group’s existence. To protect participants and their family members, some identifying information and property has been changed. Some scenes inAMISH MAFIA have been re-enacted.
Highlights from the first episodes of AMISH MAFIA include:
AMISH MAFIA: “No Peace for the Wicked”
Thurs., March 21 at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PTMeet the men who protect and maintain harmony within the Amish settlement of Lancaster, PA. When members of the community come to this group with reports of wrongdoings and other misdeeds, it is up to Levi, Alvin, Jolin, and John to fix the problem.
AMISH MAFIA: “Fire from the Lord”
Thurs., March 28 at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT
Amish Mafia boss Lebanon Levi and his crew hunt down one of their own, a man who’s evading arrest by local law enforcement. Mafia soldier John throws a hut party that goes bad when someone shows up with “green corn” (marijuana).
AMISH MAFIA: “Devil Comes Calling”
Thurs., April 4 at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT
With Levi and his crew reeling from the arrest of one of their own, a new threat emerges. Merlin, the leader of Ohio’s Amish Mafia, moves to take Levi down and to steal control of his vast Pennsylvania empire.
