King of the Godfathers
Page 33
U.S. v. Anthony Salerno, et.al., 868 F.2d 524 (1989).
U.S. v. Anthony Spero, et.al., 331 F.3d 57 (2003).
U.S. v Anthony Urso, et.al., 03-cr-1382, United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Government Publications
New York State Joint Legislative Committee on Crime, Its Causes, Control and Effect on Society. Report for 1970, September 1970.
Presidential Commission on Organized Crime. Record of Hearings, Vols. 1–7. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1983–1985.
Newspapers Consulted
Daily News
Newsday (Long Island)
New York Newsday
New York Post
New York Times
Record (Hackensack, New Jersey)
Womens Wear Daily
Other Periodicals
Lombardi, John. “The Dumbest Don.” New York Magazine, January 17, 2005.
Plate, Thomas, ed. The Mafia at War. NYM Corporation, 1972.
Web Sites
www.crimelibrary.com
www.fbi.gov
www.findagrave.com
www.ganglandnews.com
www.Lexis.com
www.Mafia-International.com
www.Nexis.com
www.usdoj.gov/usao/nye (U.S. Attorney’s office, Eastern District of New York)
Acknowledgments
A book like this, covering decades of the history of the American Mafia in general and the Bonanno crime family in particular, is the result of a lot of research. Along the way, there were numerous people who helped with this work and I want to acknowledge them all at this time. Some were only able to assist me with the proviso that their identities be kept secret and confidential. They know who they are and they, too, have my thanks.
First, I would like to thank my editor at Kensington Publishing, Gary Goldstein. Usually, editors are the last to be thanked by authors. But Gary came to me out of the blue one day in late 2004 with the idea of a book about Joseph Massino. He had followed my Newsday coverage of the Massino trial that year and liked what he read. With his encouragement, I put together a proposal that he patiently shepherded through the editorial process until a deal was struck. For his continuous support and encouragement, I thank him.
Among those in law enforcement, I would like to thank several people in the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s Office: prosecutors Greg Andres, Robert Henoch, Mitra Hormozi; press spokesman Robert Nardoza; and paralegal Samantha Ward. At the New York Office of the FBI, invaluable assistance was given by Special Agents James Margolin and Kimberly McCaffrey. In Washington, Special Agent Jeffrey Sallet gave the same kind of help and guidance, as did Jack Stubing in White Plains, New York.
Several former FBI agents were also generous with their time, spending hours with me in interviews and conversations about an important and exciting time in law enforcement history. They are Patrick Colgan, Patrick Marshall, Steve Morrill, and Charles Rooney.
David Breitbart and Flora Edwards, two defense lawyers who represented Joseph Massino and who I got to know during his 2004 trial, deserve special thanks for the patient help they gave me in understanding the dynamics of the case from their perspective.
A number of other private attorneys who I came to know over my years of work as a journalist covering organized crime and legal affairs were treasure troves of information. Some of them had served as prosecutors and had firsthand knowledge of the events portrayed in this book. Others had (and still do) worked as defense attorneys and were involved in some of the criminal cases that served as the spine for the story of Joseph Massino and his life. This group of lawyers includes Frank Bari, Bruce Cutler, James DiPietro, Ronald Fischetti, Steven K. Frankel, Barry Levin, Jon Pollok, Murray Richman, Ephraim Savitt, Gerald Shargel, James Walden, and Joel Winograd. Special mention goes to Ruth Nordenbrook, a former member of the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s Office, who was instrumental in bringing some of the early cases to my attention that proved to be a vital part of this story and was very generous with her time.
Private investigator and security expert Eugene Sampieri, an old friend who was one of the first in his profession to realize the usefulness of computerization, gave helpful advice and historical perspective.
As is often the case in Mafia stories, the reporting of other writers, and newspaper and magazine journalists was relied on and I would like to mention those whose work proved helpful. They are Justo Bautista, Bill Bonanno, Pete Bowles, Jimmy Breslin, Leonard Buder, Jerry Capeci, Kati Cornell, Robert Greene, Charles Grutzner, Glenn Fowler, Stephen Fox, William Glaberson, Zach Haberman, David Hafetz, Adrian Humphreys (Canada), Tom Hays, Lee La-mothe (Canada), Arnold H. Lubasch, John Marzulli, Allan May, Alexandra Mosca, Gene Mustain, Tom Perrotta, Nicholas Pileggi, Joseph Pistone, Selwyn Raab, Will Rashbaum, Thomas C. Renner, Ralph Salerno, Tony Sciacca, Max H. Seigel, Greg Smith, Gay Talese, Michael Weissenstein, and Richard Woodley.
Books about crime figures are often mainly distilled from police and law enforcement sources. But in reporting the story of Joseph Massino, through his 2004 trial and beyond, I had the unique opportunity of receiving the courtesy and consideration of his immediate family. Massino’s wife, Josephine, gave me an exclusive interview at the start of her husband’s trial that was published in Newsday and was trusting enough, despite what she was going through, to talk with me throughout that proceeding. Her daughters Adeline and Joanne also participated in the interview with their mother and talked to me as trial events warranted. They showed a tremendous amount of class and civility through a very difficult time. They may not like everything that is contained in this story but I hope they find my account of Joseph Massino’s life to be fair and accurate.
I made one accommodation to the Massino women in my dealings with them. Joanne and Adeline asked that neither their married names nor the names of their children be used as a way of protecting the youngsters’ privacy. That seemed reasonable. The children had been shielded from public pressure and as of this writing really do not know the full details of what happened to their grandfather and what he did with his life. At some point, the Massino grandchildren will learn about what happened and make up their own minds about him. I hope this book helps them in some way to understand.
I also want to thank my colleagues at Newsday for giving me the freedom and time to pursue this book. Special thanks to my editor John Mancini, managing editor Mary Ann Skinner, associate managing editor Les Payne, photo editors Chris Hatch and Jeff Schamberry, city editor Diane Davis, and assistant city editor Melanie Lefkowitz. My colleague and friend, columnist Jimmy Breslin, gave me a lot of encouragement as well.
Susan, and our dog, Ollie, had to put up with my moods and inattention as I worked the many months on the writing and research. They get special thanks for keeping the faith and offering encouragement every step of the way.
Finally, I want to thank my agent, Jill Marsal at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, contracts expert Elisabeth James, and subrights manager Taryn Fagerness for carefully guiding me through the process of getting this book published.
Some names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals connected to this story.
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Copyright © 2006 by Anthony M. DeStefano
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