Description:

AL CAPONE'S FIRST PRISON SENTENCE, PHILADELPHIA, 1929
ALPHONSE CAPONE (1899-1947) 'Scarface', famed American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the Chicago Outfit. His seven-year reign as a crime boss ended when he went to prison at the age of 33. A fine grouping of documents related to Capone's incarceration at Philadelphia's Eastern State Penitentiary following his first conviction. Capone stopped in Philadelphia while traveling from Atlantic City back to his home in Chicago in May, 1929, where he was arrested for carrying a concealed, unlicensed .38 caliber revolver. He pled guilty and was handed a one year sentence, and spent seven months at the prison, where he was treated to a cell outfitted with fine furniture, beautiful rugs, tasteful artwork, and a fancy radio. His cell remains a tourist attraction at that famous prison today. A wonderful grouping of documents concerning Capone's sentencing and subsequent incarceration at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. Included in this grouping is Capone's original sentencing document, 1p. oblong 8vo., Philadelphia, May 31, 1929, the case of the 'Commonwealth of Pennsylvania vs. Alphonsus [sic] Capone alias Al Brown alias Scar Face', with the charge being 'Carrying Concealed Deadly Weapons' and heard by Judge John E. Walsh, Jr.. Capone is ordered to pay a fine of 'one (1) cent' and 'undergo imprisonment...for the term of One (1) year and not to be discharged unless order of discharge is countersigned by Hon. John E. Walsh & the district attorney John Monaghan...'. Signed by the court clerk at conclusion and sealed. Fine. Also included is a notarized Petition for Transfer, 3pp. legal folio, Philadelphia, Aug. 9, 1929, signed by Judge Harry S. McDevitt (or one acting in his stead), stating the charge against Capone, and the fact that the county prison at Holmesburg was too crowded to accommodate the prisoner. It further orders that Capone be transferred to Eastern State Penitentiary; a U.S. Naturalization Service T.L.S. to the warden, 1p. 4to., Philadelphia, Dec. 9, 1930 mentioning 'Scarface Al Capone' and his bodyguard, and that an investigation was underway, seeking their records and 'citizenship status', no doubt with an eye towards deporting them; a Dec. 10, 1930 retained copy of Warden Herbert Smith's T.L.S. in response, sending his reports (not included, letter badly chipped); two 8 x 5 in. prison or court personnel cards relative to Capone's sentencing and intended date of release; a retained copy of an Aug. 12, 1929 T.L.S. from Parole Supervisor Courtland Butler to the Bureau of Restoration in Harrisburg, acknowledging receipt of custody of Capone; a 1p. 4to. partial list of 26 names and addresses, in pencil, apparently parties allowed to, or actually correspond with, Capone while incarcerated. Surnames include many known associates of Capone, perhaps using false first initials, including 'Pendergast', 'Amato', etc.; a discharge document citing Capone's name, prisoner number, physical characteristics, dates incarcerated, etc.; an early 8 x 10 in. b/w photograph of Capone's fingerprints and a U.S. Bureau of Investigation 'Explanation of Fingerprint Classification'; three retained copies of T.Ls.S. from Warden Herbert Smith, Parole Supervisor Courtland Butler, and Sec. James Gallagher, regarding a writ of habeas corpus, refusing newspaper interviews, etc., margins chipped; and two pages of handwritten, disparate notes from Capone's prison file. 1929 was a busy year for Capone: he eliminated a number of his enemies at the 'St. Valentine's Day Massacre', beat usurpers' brains out with a baseball bat at a dinner table, and only a week after his release from this, his first prison sentence, was named as the number one 'Public Enemy' on the unofficial Chicago Crime Commission's widely publicized list. Overall very good.

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January 27, 2023 10:00 AM EST
Elkton, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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