Let's also not forget, in most cases, members and associates of organized crime don't even go to the harshest prisons, judging from photos I've seen. They generally do soft time, with few exceptions. John Gotti was one exception because the government really wanted to stick it to him, obviously because he humiliated them. So when you have guys flipping because they're afraid of doing soft jail time, it makes them look even softer. Then, when you have guys flipping over gambling and assault cases, it makes them look softer still flipping over just a few months. All the Commission bosses took 100 years like nothing, so no it's not just the threat of prison time.