1931 : Capone goes to prison
On this day in 1931, gangster Al Capone is sentenced to 11 years in
prison for tax evasion and fined $80,000, signaling the downfall of
one of the most notorious criminals of the 1920s and 1930s.
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1899 to
Italian immigrants. He was expelled from school at 14, joined a gang
and earned his nickname "Scarface" after being sliced across the cheek
during a fight.
By 1920, Capone had moved to Chicago, where he was soon helping to run
crime boss Johnny Torrio's illegal enterprises, which included
alcohol-smuggling, gambling and prostitution. Torrio retired in 1925
after an attempt on his life and Capone, known for his cunning and
brutality, was put in charge of the organization. Prohibition, which
outlawed the brewing and distribution of alcohol and lasted from 1920
to 1933, proved extremely lucrative for bootleggers and gangsters like
Capone, who raked in millions from his underworld activities.
Capone was at the top of the F.B.I.'s "Most Wanted" list by 1930, but
he avoided long stints in jail until 1931 by bribing city officials,
intimidating witnesses and maintaining various hideouts. He became
Chicago's crime kingpin by wiping out his competitors through a series
of gangland battles and slayings, including the infamous St.
Valentine's Day Massacre in 1929, when Capone's men gunned down seven
rivals. This event helped raise Capone's notoriety to a national
level.
Among Capone's enemies was federal agent Elliot Ness, who led a team
of officers known as "The Untouchables" because they couldn't be
corrupted. Ness and his men routinely broke up Capone's bootlegging
businesses, but it was tax-evasion charges that finally stuck and
landed Capone in prison in 1931.
Capone began serving his time at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta, but
amid accusations that he was manipulating the system and receiving
cushy treatment, he was transferred to the maximum-security lockup at
Alcatraz Island, in California's San Francisco Bay. He got out early
in 1939 for good behavior, after spending his final year in prison in
a hospital, suffering from syphilis. Plagued by health problems for
the rest of his life, Capone died in 1947 at age 48 at his home in
Palm Island, Florida.
history.com/tdih.do
1777 : Patriot victory at Saratoga
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5444
1961 : Algerians massacred in Paris
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5445
1973 : OPEC enacts oil embargo
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7053
1989 : Earthquake rocks San Francisco
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5446
#########################################
On this day in 1931, gangster Al Capone is sentenced to 11 years in
prison for tax evasion and fined $80,000, signaling the downfall of
one of the most notorious criminals of the 1920s and 1930s.
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1899 to
Italian immigrants. He was expelled from school at 14, joined a gang
and earned his nickname "Scarface" after being sliced across the cheek
during a fight.
By 1920, Capone had moved to Chicago, where he was soon helping to run
crime boss Johnny Torrio's illegal enterprises, which included
alcohol-smuggling, gambling and prostitution. Torrio retired in 1925
after an attempt on his life and Capone, known for his cunning and
brutality, was put in charge of the organization. Prohibition, which
outlawed the brewing and distribution of alcohol and lasted from 1920
to 1933, proved extremely lucrative for bootleggers and gangsters like
Capone, who raked in millions from his underworld activities.
Capone was at the top of the F.B.I.'s "Most Wanted" list by 1930, but
he avoided long stints in jail until 1931 by bribing city officials,
intimidating witnesses and maintaining various hideouts. He became
Chicago's crime kingpin by wiping out his competitors through a series
of gangland battles and slayings, including the infamous St.
Valentine's Day Massacre in 1929, when Capone's men gunned down seven
rivals. This event helped raise Capone's notoriety to a national
level.
Among Capone's enemies was federal agent Elliot Ness, who led a team
of officers known as "The Untouchables" because they couldn't be
corrupted. Ness and his men routinely broke up Capone's bootlegging
businesses, but it was tax-evasion charges that finally stuck and
landed Capone in prison in 1931.
Capone began serving his time at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta, but
amid accusations that he was manipulating the system and receiving
cushy treatment, he was transferred to the maximum-security lockup at
Alcatraz Island, in California's San Francisco Bay. He got out early
in 1939 for good behavior, after spending his final year in prison in
a hospital, suffering from syphilis. Plagued by health problems for
the rest of his life, Capone died in 1947 at age 48 at his home in
Palm Island, Florida.
history.com/tdih.do
1777 : Patriot victory at Saratoga
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5444
1961 : Algerians massacred in Paris
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5445
1973 : OPEC enacts oil embargo
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7053
1989 : Earthquake rocks San Francisco
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5446
#########################################
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