Al Capone Accomplishments

During the early 1900’s American cities was already riddled with criminals who were taking advantage of illegal gambling and prostitution. When prohibition of alcohol went into effect due to the 18th amendment it created a perfect storm for many gangsters to capitalize on a new illegal industry. Although the country would eventually do away with prohibition there was still an ample amount of time for criminals to rise to become some of the most powerful individuals in the country. The crime boss Al Capone was one of the most infamous mafia leaders in American history. During his younger years he was nothing more than a typical Italian immigrant but as he got older he began to take up a life of crime. He would eventually rise in the ranks to

He was one of 8 siblings and they lived the typical life of poor Italian immigrants. According to the History.com staff “Capone was a good student […] but began falling behind and had to repeat the sixth grade. […] One day, Capone’s teacher hit him for insolence and he struck back. The principal gave him a beating, and Capone never again returned to school”. (n.pag.) This may have been an early sign of what is to come in his future. When the Capones eventually moved to the outskirts of a Park Slope neighborhood he met his future wife Mary Coughlin and his mob mentor Johnny

After the St. Valentine’s Day massacre there was a large public demand to have Capone put in prison. Since there was not enough evidence to arrest Capone on some of his other crimes, President Hoover order the government to step up their efforts on convicting him of Tax Evasion. It was no secret that Capone had several sources of income due to his somewhat “celebrity” status and lavish life style so the IRS was able to easily prove he was breaking the law in that regard. The Supreme Court had ruled, in 1927, that income earned from illegal activities was in fact taxable so on June 5, 1931 Capone was indicted on 22 counts of tax evasion. When he went to trial he tried to bribe the jurors but right before they heard the case the judge switched out the jurors for new ones and Capone was sentenced to eleven years in