The Commission Case

Never has there been a case that has had such a big impact on the American Mafia than the commission case. The entire New York Mafia hierarchy was prosecuted in one courtroom in a case that finally brought about the end to the bosses unbelievable untouchable image, they have enjoyed for so long. The trial was put together by the US attorney of the southern district of Manhattan, Rudy Giuliani. After reading the biography of Joe Bonanno, Rudy realized that he could use the RICO statute to prosecute each of the heads of the five families’ in New York.

The five bosses under indictment were Tony Salerno (Genovese Boss), Paul Castellano, (Gambino Boss) Tony Corallo, (Lucchese Boss) Philip Rastelli (Bonanno Boss) and Jerry Langella (Columbo de'facto Boss). Also under indictment Aneillo Dellacroce, (Gambino Underboss) Salvatore Santaro, (Lucchese Underboss) Christopher Furnari, (Lucchese Consiglieri) and Ralph Scopo Columbo capo and president of the concrete workers union. The two men who didn't make it to the trial were Paul Castellano and Aneillo Dellacroce. Paul Castellano became a victim of a John Gotti power grab, and Aneillo Dellacroce eventually died of the tumour that had been eating away his brain, Carmine Persico Would take his place.

Most of the evidence for the trial was due to the bugging of Gambino boss Paul Castellano's home on Todt Hill. The Feds listened in to crucial conversations involving Paul and many of his underlings. The Feds also taped highly incriminating conversations involving his relationship with other bosses and their joint interests in building contracts, where they shared the profits of the union kickbacks. These were vital in the prosecution of Paul and his fellow commissioners, as the tapes would easily prove their existence in the slice up business of bid rigging.

The government also set out to prove to the jury that the commission had also sanctioned a number of murders, including that of Carmine Galante the former Bonanno boss and underboss Guiseppe Turano, along with many others. During the thirty four days of testimony the government brought forward more than eighty witnesses and one hundred fifty tapes that proved without a shadow of a doubt that the commission members engaged in each and every act of which they were standing trial. Other evidence showed the many payoffs and bribes made by firms who had paid between seven hundred and twenty nine thousand (depending on the size of the job) to insure the contracts of making concrete and the delivery of goods.

All the defendants had paid astronomical fees to their Lawyers, all but Carmine Persico that is who decided to represent himself and actually did a commendable job. Never the less though it was all in vain as all of the defendants were found guilty and sentenced to a hundred years behind bars.

The trial was a magnificent victory for the government. The FBI took a lot of the credit for the success of the trial, their around the clock surveillance of the mob bosses provided the prosecutors with irrefutable evidence, and ironically enough, most of the evidence came from the home of the only boss not to be convicted, although Paul Castellano was killed before the trial got going, he was actually the principle target of the case and if he was alive to stand trial he would have most definitely faced the same fate of his fellow commissioners.

Rudy Giuliani was delighted with his efforts in prosecuting the entire commission of the New York mob; he had finally shattered the immunity many of the bosses had enjoyed for so long. "Now it feels like a more level playing field,” a jubilant Rudy Giuliani boasted after what for me at least was arguably Giuliani's finest hour.

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