James Marcello
Encyclopedia
Crime boss
A crime boss or boss is a person in charge of a criminal organization. A boss typically has absolute or near-absolute control over his subordinates, is greatly feared by his subordinates for his ruthlessness and willingness to take lives in order to exert his influence, and profits come from the...
who was a front boss
Crime boss
A crime boss or boss is a person in charge of a criminal organization. A boss typically has absolute or near-absolute control over his subordinates, is greatly feared by his subordinates for his ruthlessness and willingness to take lives in order to exert his influence, and profits come from the...
for the Chicago Outfit
Chicago Outfit
The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
criminal organization in the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. Organized crime observers identified Marcello as a figurehead during that period while the organization's day-to-day operations actually were run by John “No Nose” DiFronzo
John DiFronzo
John "No Nose, Bananas, Johnny Bananas" DiFronzo is a Chicago mobster and the reputed boss of the Chicago Outfit.A former enforcer and caporegime, DiFronzo was convicted along with then-current Chicago boss Samuel "Black Sam" Carlisi on federal racketeering charges in 1993, however, the conviction...
, Joseph “Joey the Clown” Lombardo
Joseph Lombardo
Joseph Patrick “Joey the Clown” Lombardo Sr. , also known as "Joe Padula," "Lumbo," and "Lumpy", is an imprisoned American mafioso and a high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit crime organization...
and Joseph “Joe the Builder” Andriacchi
Joseph Andriacchi
Joseph "The Builder" Andriacchi has been reported by Chicago newspapers to be a high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit criminal organization.-Chicago Outfit career:...
. Marcello is the half-brother of Michael Marcello, and a cousin of Chicago Outfit
Chicago Outfit
The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
mobster Robert Urbinatti. He is also the father of Rocco Marcello.
Early career
Born in Chicago, Marcello worked as a laborer for Chicago's Department of Streets and Sanitation from 1960 until 1973.Marcello reportedly became a "made" member
Made man
A made man, also known as a Mafioso , made guy, man of honor, or uomo d'onore , is someone who has been officially inducted into the Sicilian or American Mafia . They may also be referred to by some as a goodfella or wiseguy...
in the Chicago mob in 1983—a step that, a mob turncoat testified in 2007, required an individual to be 100 percent Italian and also to have participated in at least one killing. Actually (and perhaps unknown to Marcello's bosses), Marcello's mother was Irish.
Although he had no criminal record whatsoever, Marcello first became identified by authorities as a critical member of the Chicago Outfit
Chicago Outfit
The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
in the 1980s because of his role as a driver for Chicago mob bosses Joseph Aiuppa
Joseph Aiuppa
Joseph John Aiuppa , also known as "Doves," "Mourning Doves," "O'Brien," or "Joey Doves," was a Chicago mobster who became a leader of the Chicago Outfit.-Early career:...
and Sam "Wings" Carlisi and as a confidant to Carlisi.
Carlisi trial
On December 15, 1992, federal authorities charged Marcello and reputed mob boss Sam "Wings" Carlisi with racketeering. Marcello was accused of being the underboss for Carlisi, whose street crew worked its rackets in Chicago's western suburbs. On December 16, 1993, Marcello, Carlisi and five other crew members were convicted on racketeering charges, with Marcello in particular being found to have run bookmaking, street-tax and juice-loan operations in western Cook CountyCook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
and in DuPage County. Marcello and Carlisi also were convicted of plotting the never-carried-out murder of gangland associate Anthony Daddino because of fears that Daddino would cooperate with law enforcement after a 1989 extortion conviction, and Marcello also was convicted of financing long-time mobster Lenny Patrick
Leonard Patrick
Leonard "Lenny" Patrick was an American mobster, a member of the Chicago Outfit involved in bookmaking and extortion and later a government informant.Emigrating with his family from England...
's juice-loan operation. In addition, Marcello was found to have ordered Patrick to firebomb the Lake Theater in Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest municipality in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago due to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines,...
during a union dispute.
On April 5, 1995, Marcello was sentenced to 12½ years in prison. During his sentencing, he told U.S. District Judge Paul Plunkett
Paul Edward Plunkett
Paul Edward Plunkett is a United States federal judge.Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Plunkett received a B.A. from Harvard University in 1957 and a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1960. He was in private practice in Chicago, Illinois from 1960 to 1963. He was an assistant U.S. Attorney of the...
, "If my name wasn't James Marcello, I wouldn't be standing in front of you. That's all I have to say," according to an April 6, 1995, Chicago Tribune article. In November 2003, Marcello was released from a federal prison camp in Milan, Michigan
Milan, Michigan
Milan is a city in Monroe and Washtenaw counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,775 at the 2000 census. About 60% of the city's area and 75% of its residents are located on the Washtenaw County side adjacent to York Township in Washtenaw County; while 40% percent of the...
and returned to his home in Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, "The Lilac Village", is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 42,322 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population in 2004 to be 42,975.-History:...
. During the Family Secrets trial, it came out that Marcello began working at some point after his 2003 release from prison for DVD Management, an Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
Oakbrook Terrace is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The population was 2,300 at the 2000 census. A 2003 recount gave the city a population of 2,293. Its current mayor is Tony "Red Panda" Ragucci.-Points of interest:...
-based operator of nursing homes.
Family Secrets Trial
In April 2005, Marcello and his younger half-brother, Michael "Mickey" Marcello, were indicted on murder and racketeering charges. James Marcello was accused of murdering Nicholas D'Andrea, in 1981, attempting to kill Nicholas Sarillo, Sr. in 1982, and murdering brothers Anthony "Tony the Ant" SpilotroAnthony Spilotro
Anthony "The Ant" Spilotro was an Italian-American mobster and enforcer for the Chicago Outfit in Las Vegas during the 1970s and 1980s. His job was to protect and oversee the Outfit's illegal casino profits...
and Michael Spilotro
Michael Spilotro
Michael Peter "Micky" Spilotro was the brother of Anthony "Tony the Ant" Spilotro and was an associate of the Chicago La Cosa Nostra organized crime organization referred to as "The Outfit".-Family background:...
in 1986. Until his indictment, James Marcello also was identified as running the Cicero, Illinois
Cicero, Illinois
Cicero is an incorporated town in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 83,891 at the 2010 census. Cicero is named for the town of Cicero, New York, which in turn was named for Marcus Tullius Cicero, the Roman statesman and orator....
, crew faction of the Outfit with his brother Michael. The indictment alleged that both Marcellos had operated a lucrative video-gambling business, named M&M Amusement, that had placed video-gambling machines in businesses in Berwyn, Illinois
Berwyn, Illinois
Berwyn is a city in Cook County, Illinois, co-existent with Berwyn Township, which was formed in 1908 after breaking off from Cicero Township. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 54,016.-Demographics:...
and Cicero, Illinois
Cicero, Illinois
Cicero is an incorporated town in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 83,891 at the 2010 census. Cicero is named for the town of Cicero, New York, which in turn was named for Marcus Tullius Cicero, the Roman statesman and orator....
from January 1996 until April 2004.
Shortly after he was indicted, Marcello attempted to be released on bond, offering to put up homes worth $12.5 million as bond and also offering to permit law enforcement officials to intercept his telephone calls. The homes included a $9 million house in Oak Brook, Illinois
Oak Brook, Illinois
Oak Brook is a village in DuPage and Cook Counties, in Illinois. The population was 8,702 at the 2000 census. A suburb of Chicago, it is the headquarters of McDonald's and Lions Clubs International.-History:...
that was owned by Marcello's niece, Theresa Borsellino, and her husband; $1.1 million of equity in a house in Oak Brook that was owned by Nicholas Vangel—described as Marcello's employer—and his wife, Dorothy; a house in Palos Hills, Illinois
Palos Hills, Illinois
Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb of Chicago. The population was 17,665 at the 2000 census. It is the home of Moraine Valley Community College as well as Amos Alonzo Stagg High School.-Geography:...
owned by Marcello's son, James Marcello, Jr.; a summer house in Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City's origins date to 1830, when the land for the city was first purchased by Isaac C. Elston. Elston Middle School, formerly Elston High School, located at 317 Detroit St., is named after the founder....
owned by James Marcello, Jr.; a farm in McHenry County, Illinois
McHenry County, Illinois
McHenry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 308,760, which is an increase of 18.7% from 260,077 in 2000. Its county seat is Woodstock. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is the sixth largest county, in...
owned by James Marcello, Jr.; and two homes in Long Beach, Indiana
Long Beach, Indiana
Long Beach is a town in Michigan Township, LaPorte County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census, Long Beach population was 1,179. It is included in the Michigan City, Indiana-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
owned by James Marcello, Jr.'s boss. On April 29, 2005, however, U.S. District Judge James Zagel
James Zagel
James Block Zagel is a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and a novelist.- Early life and education :...
denied Marcello's request to be released on bond.
On June 21, 2007, the “Family Secrets” trial began in Chicago. The case was prosecuted by federal mob prosecutors Mitch Mars, T. Markus Funk
T. Markus Funk
T. Markus Funk is an American lawyer, author, and academic.- Before working for Justice :Prior to joining the Department of Justice, Funk taught law at Oxford University, and was a law clerk to Judge Morris S. Arnold, U.S. Court of Appeal for the Eighth Circuit, and Catherine D. Perry, U.S....
, and John Scully. Although several other high-profile defendants, including Frank Calabrese, Sr.
Frank Calabrese, Sr.
Frank Calabrese, Sr. , also known as "Frankie Breeze," is a made man and a caporegime who ran major loansharking and illegal gambling operations for the Chicago Outfit. He is best known as a central figure in Operation Family Secrets and the subsequent Federal trial.-Early life:Frank Calabrese, Sr...
, and Joseph Lombardo
Joseph Lombardo
Joseph Patrick “Joey the Clown” Lombardo Sr. , also known as "Joe Padula," "Lumbo," and "Lumpy", is an imprisoned American mafioso and a high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit crime organization...
, took the highly unusual step of testifying in their own defense, Marcello opted not to take the stand to testify. During the trial, Michael Spilotro's daughter, Michelle Spilotro, testified that she could identify Marcello's voice in a "voice line-up" and that she remembered that Marcello had called her house twice on the day in 1986 that her father had disappeared. In addition, mob turncoat Nicholas Calabrese
Nicholas Calabrese
Nicholas W. Calabrese is the first made man ever to testify against the Chicago Outfit. His testimony and cooperation with federal prosecutors helped result in the 2007 murder convictions of mobsters Joseph Lombardo, James Marcello and Frank Calabrese, Sr.- Early life and work outside of the...
testified that Marcello had driven the Spilotro brothers to a home in Bensenville, Illinois
Bensenville, Illinois
Bensenville is a village located primarily in DuPage County, Illinois, with a small section near O'Hare International Airport in Cook County, Illinois, overlapping into the city of Chicago. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 20,703. Bensenville is home to the Edge Ice Arena, home of...
in a ruse that Michael Spilotro
Michael Spilotro
Michael Peter "Micky" Spilotro was the brother of Anthony "Tony the Ant" Spilotro and was an associate of the Chicago La Cosa Nostra organized crime organization referred to as "The Outfit".-Family background:...
was about to become a "made" member of the mob and that Anthony Spilotro—already a "made" member—was to be promoted to a "capo
Caporegime
A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to just a capo, is a term used in the Mafia for a high ranking made member of a crime family who heads a "crew" of soldiers and has major social status and influence in the organization...
," or captain. Instead, Calabrese testified that he and Marcello—and about 10 other mobsters, including Louis Eboli, Louis Marino
Louis Marino
Louis Marino is an imprisoned crime boss for the Chicago Outfit criminal organization. He is due to be released in February 2016.- Early life :...
, John DiFronzo
John DiFronzo
John "No Nose, Bananas, Johnny Bananas" DiFronzo is a Chicago mobster and the reputed boss of the Chicago Outfit.A former enforcer and caporegime, DiFronzo was convicted along with then-current Chicago boss Samuel "Black Sam" Carlisi on federal racketeering charges in 1993, however, the conviction...
, Sam "Wings" Carlisi and Joseph Ferriola
Joseph Ferriola
Joseph Ferriola , also known as, "Joe Nagall," "Mr. Clean" and "Oscar," was an American mobster who helped run the Chicago Outfit, from 1985 to 1988, after Joseph Aiuppa and John Cerone went to prison for skimming Las Vegas casino profits.- Early life :Joseph Anthony Ferriola was a product of...
-- strangled the Spilotro brothers and beat them to death. Calabrese also testified that Marcello paid Calabrese's family $4,000 a month while both men were in prison to keep Calabrese quiet about past mob slayings.
On September 10, 2007, Marcello was convicted of racketeering, running an illegal gambling operation, obstruction of justice for paying Nicholas Calabrese hush-money, and failure to pay taxes on gambling income. After the verdict, according to news accounts, Marcello winked at his family members, including his son, James Marcello, Jr., and kissed his attorney, Marc Martin, on the cheek. On September 27, 2007, the same jury convicted Marcello of the murders of the Spilotros, but acquitted him in the D'Andrea murder. Marcello faced from 15-years-to-life on the racketeering charges and up to life in prison for the murders. Marcello was held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center
Metropolitan Correctional Center, Chicago
The Metropolitan Correctional Center, Chicago is a federal remand center in the United States, located in downtown Chicago, Illinois, at the intersection of Clark and Van Buren Streets. It has a triangular footprint, and has an exercise yard for the prisoners on its roof...
, in Chicago, while awaiting sentencing.
On February 5, 2009, Marcello was sentenced
Sentence (law)
In law, a sentence forms the final explicit act of a judge-ruled process, and also the symbolic principal act connected to his function. The sentence can generally involve a decree of imprisonment, a fine and/or other punishments against a defendant convicted of a crime...
to life in prison
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
for the Spilotro murders, and United States District Judge James Zagel
James Zagel
James Block Zagel is a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and a novelist.- Early life and education :...
, agreeing with the presentation made by federal prosecutor Markus Funk, also found Marcello responsible for the D'Andrea murder as well, even though the jury had deadlocked
Hung jury
A hung jury or deadlocked jury is a jury that cannot, by the required voting threshold, agree upon a verdict after an extended period of deliberation and is unable to change its votes due to severe differences of opinion.- England and Wales :...
on that count. "Mr. Marcello, you did have the appropriate demeanor in court," United States District Judge James Zagel
James Zagel
James Block Zagel is a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and a novelist.- Early life and education :...
told Marcello. "I believe you possess abilities that your co-defendants (Frank Calabrese, Sr.
Frank Calabrese, Sr.
Frank Calabrese, Sr. , also known as "Frankie Breeze," is a made man and a caporegime who ran major loansharking and illegal gambling operations for the Chicago Outfit. He is best known as a central figure in Operation Family Secrets and the subsequent Federal trial.-Early life:Frank Calabrese, Sr...
and Joseph Lombardo
Joseph Lombardo
Joseph Patrick “Joey the Clown” Lombardo Sr. , also known as "Joe Padula," "Lumbo," and "Lumpy", is an imprisoned American mafioso and a high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit crime organization...
) did not have. I believe you have self-control and judgment that your co-defendants did not have...You know how to do the right thing....What is most significant is that you could have done better, because perhaps unlike your co-defendants, you know how to do better. I regret that you did not lead a better life. You are going to pay for your crimes."
Marcello currently is incarcerated at the high-security United States Penitentiary, Atwater
United States Penitentiary, Atwater
United States Penitentiary, Atwater is a federal prison in the United States. Located in a former portion of Castle Air Force Base near the city of Atwater in unincorporated Merced County, California, it is from San Francisco....
, near Atwater, California
Atwater, California
Atwater is a city on U.S. Route 99 in Merced County, California, United States. Atwater is west-northwest of Merced, at an elevation of 151 feet . The population as of the 2010 census was 28,168.-Geography:...
.
In April 2009, Family Secrets: The Case That Crippled the Chicago Mob by Jeff Coen, the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
reporter for the trial, was published by Chicago Review Press.
Personal
Marcello is the son of Samuel Marcello, a Chicago mobster who disappeared in November 1973 after collecting a juice loan from a Chicago restaurant owner. Samuel Marcello's body was not found until July 6, 1974, when it was uncovered in a 50-gallon steel drum left at the sandwich shop. The sandwich shop owner, Sam Rantis, had been found dead earlier in 1974, his body stuffed into his car trunk at O'Hare International AirportO'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
. Law enforcement believed at the time that Rantis was blamed by the mob for the men's deaths, and he was slain in retaliation.
Marcello's mother, Irene Flynn (later Irene Marcello, and later Irene Marcello Evans), was 100 percent Irish. She died in mid-February 2009, less than two weeks after her son James Marcello was sentenced to life in prison.
Marcello has been married to Sandra Marcello since the early 1960s and has three children with her, Samuel, James Marcello, Jr., Rocco, and had two daughters Debbie and Mary from an minor affair "which Marcello never known" and eight grandchildren.
Marcello also had a mistress for more than two decades who took his last name and testified for the prosecution in the Family Secrets trial. Connie Marcello told jurors in 2007 that James Marcello had given her thousands of dollars a month in cash.
In addition, Marcello's sister, Ann, is married to William Galioto, a former police officer who has been listed as a lieutenant on the Chicago Crime Commission's
Chicago Crime Commission
The Chicago Crime Commission is an independent, non-partisan civic watchdog organization of business leaders dedicated to educating the public about the dangers of organized criminal activity, especially organized crime, street gangs and the tools of their trade: drugs, guns, public corruption,...
organizational chart of Chicago organized crime. In 1995, William Galioto, Ann Galioto, and William Galioto's son, Sam Galioto, were denied a $5.5 million loan from City of Chicago officials to build a video and movie production center because of city officials' fears that the family might have organized crime ties.
In popular culture
The Spilotro murders were fictionalized in the 1995 film CasinoCasino (film)
Casino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese...
. However, while the Spilotros were buried in Enos, Indiana, they weren't murdered in the place they were buried, as portrayed in the film. In the film, the "bosses" have had enough of "Nicky" (Tony) and "Dominick" (Michael); and, their own crew, including "Frank Marino" (Frank Cullotta), betrays them and beats them with baseball bats, strips their clothes off and buries them while they are still breathing.