The public perception of al capone and his criminal history

Al Capone

“ Alphonse Capone was born on January 17, 1899 in Brooklyn New York to Gabriele, who was thirty years old, and his pregnant twenty-seven-year-old wife Teresina, his two-year-old son Vincenzo and his infant son Raffaele (Bergreen 1996 p. 7).” Capone grew up in a rough neighborhood by the time he was eleven he was in two gangs one was the kids gang the brooklime rippers and the forty thieves juniors. Capone quit school in sixth grade at the age fourteen. Between scams, he was a clerk at a candy store, a pin boy at the bowling alley and a cutter in a bookbindery; later on he became part of the notorious five points gang in Manhattan. Capone was once a bouncer at the Harvard Inn for Frankie Yale.

Capone got the nickname scar face from an incident he had at the Inn where he insulted a female patron and was attacked by her brother. The attack left a scar on Capone’s face. Capone met an Irish girl in 1918 named Mara (Capone nicknamed her Maat a dance. On December 4th Mae gave birth to their son Albert “ Sonny” Francis Capone, and on December 30th they married (Kobler 1992 p. 20). The first time Capone was arrested he was charged with disorderly conduct and the murder of two men, Capone was never tried for the murders. Yale sent Capone to work with his old mentor John Torris, who was working for his uncle, “ Big Jim” Colisimo.

Colisimo was a Chicago crime boss. When Colisimo forbade Torris from running a bootleg racket, Torris decided to eliminate his uncle. Torris saw Capone’s potential and soon Capone was helping Torris manage his bootlegging business. By 1922 Capone was Torris’s right hand man and became a full partner in his businesses, which included saloons, gambling houses and brothels. Torris was shot by a rival gang member and decided to leave Chicago. Capone became a major crime boss, the men trusted Capone and he proved to be a better business man and expanded his business holdings and now controlled night clubs, horse tracks, breweries, brothels and gambling houses there were reports that said his income was $100, 000, 000 a year. He also got a cleaning and drying plant chain in Chicago.

The mayor also known as big bill Hale Thompson Jr said that Capone was bad for his political image so he ran him out of Chicago (Tully 1958 p. 124). Capone looked for a new place to live he found out not many people liked him in the other states he finally bought a house in 93 Palm Island Florida in 1928. Attempts on Capone’s were always a waste of time he always knew when something was going to happen because in Chicago he had spy’s like policemen to paperboys. He was good at isolating the murders of his enemies when he thought they go to powerful. The method of killing Capone used was he would rent an apartment across the street and when they came outside the person would be shot and killed and the police never get Capone for the murders because he always had a alibi. “ On the day of February 4, 1929 Capone’s most notorious killings took place it was called the St. Valentines Day Massacre Capone sent two of the outfits to Clark street building where the main liquor headquarters was and a bootlegger George Moran’s also known as bugs of the North Side Gang, two of the outfits were dressed as policemen they came into the building and the North Side Gang thought it was a police raid so they put there weapons down laid against a wall the rest of the outfits came in and they pulled out two shot guns and two machine guns and shot one hundred and fifty bullets at the men all the men died. Capone had killed all those men plus more and some by his own hand.

Capone was never charged most of the crimes he committed but he got arrested for killing three people in 1926, it didn’t stick because of insufficient evidence to connect him to the murders (Kobler 1992 p. 68).” In 1929 he was jailed for possession of a weapon. By 1930 Capone was on the twenty-eight worst criminals list in Chicago he was called public enemy number one. People said he still treated people fairly and generously but he had a violent temper he was still a loyal man and a good man to the poor. Capone the mobster opened the first soup kitchen after the stock market crashed in 1929 and he made people and businesses donate things to the poor people. In the 1920’s and 30’s illegal gambling money was not taxable until Judge Sullivan ruled that illegal profits were taxable in 1927. “ The IRS wanted to get Capone for income tax evasion because he had never filed an income tax return stating he had no income. Capone used front men to appear to own the businesses to avoid paying income tax.

An IRS intelligence man named Frank Wilson who focused on Capone’s case, found a cash receipt ledger that showed the operations profit on a gambling house with Capone’s name on it and a record of his income. Lawrence P. Mattingly, Capon’s tax lawyer furnished the government with a letter stating Capone had an income from the men that fronted as the business owners. Elmer Ire built a case against Capone with the information he had received from Wilson and Mattingly. In 1931 Capone was indicted for income tax evasion for not filing a return and paying income tax for the years of 1925 through 1929. The government stated Capone owed $215, 080. 48 from profits he received from gambling profits on the first indictment and he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violated prohibition laws from 1922 to 1931. The judge, James H. Wilkerson would not let any deals be made, Capone was not able to bargain. Capone attempted to bribe the jury; the judge changed the jury right before the trial.

Capone was sentenced to a total of eleven years in federal prison. Capone was also fined $50, 000 dollars for being in contempt of court and had to pay his prosecution cost of $ 7, 692“(Tully 1958 p. 298). In 1932 Capone was sent to Atlanta federal prison, but once inside he took control and received special treatment such as: a mirror, a typewriter, a set of encyclopedias and a rug. According to Tully (1958) when officials found out that he had connections, they transferred to San Francisco Bay’s Alcatraz where there were no members of Capone’s gang. There was very tight security; Capone attempted to buy influence and friends but that failed.

Capone tried to get out early for good behavior, and was a model prisoner. While incarcerated at Alcatraz, Capone discovered he suffered from syphilitic dementia. Capone spent the rest of his time in the sick ward. On January 6, 1939 Capone was released from Alcatraz and sent to Terminal Island a corrections institution for his failure to file an income tax return. On November 16, 1939 Capone still owed $37, 617. 51 for court costs. When Capone was released, he went home to 93 Palms Island, Florida. Capone relaxed and attempted to recuperate. Capone’s body and mind had deteriorated and could not head up his gang the “ Outfits”. In January 1947 Capone had an apoplectic stroke rendering him unconscious. When Capone awoke he started to show signs of improvement, but on January 24, 1947 Pneumonia set in and he died the next day. Capone was one of the first people buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago; he was buried between his father Gabriele and his brother Frank. Later the trio’s bodies were moved to Mount Carmel Cemetery in March of 1950.