Did anything surprise you about the trial of Lucky Luciano? Why do you think Dewey didn’t want to prosecute Luciano for running a prostitution ring? Do you think this perspective would still be in evidence today?
I thought it was interesting that Dewey didn’t want to prosecute Luciano for prostitution. Even though Luciano was a known crime boss, his being involved with prostitution was initially seen as a lesser crime, a moral indiscretion. The women were seen as culpable for their crimes but the men were treated differently. This is an example of the patriarchy of the day. I do not think our society has moved entirely beyond that patriarchy.
I agree and I also found it interesting that all the people were constantly complaining about the prostitution yet none of the politicians wanted to do anything about it. I would think at least in this day and age politicians would want to cater to their voters wishes but as a society we still blame and shame the women while giving the men a pass.
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The one thing about the trial that surprised me what how Luciano said he didn’t know all these people who were supposed to be business associates! I love the “wasn’t me” defense, haha. I can’t imagine the jurors would have bought that even without the testimony of the hotel housekeeper.
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I think Dewey knew that there were too many men in New York who regularly frequented houses of prostitution, and that unfortunately it was more important not to embarrass men of “stature” if at all possible during this trial. Sad to say this perspective continues to permeate politics and the justice system in America in the 21st century.
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I agree. Prostitution and demeaning and abusing women were lesser crimes then, and now.
Well said! Prostitution was a crime for the women but was “boys will be boys” for the men. Even today, women are often shamed rather than being treated as victims. However, that is hopefully changing, albeit slowly.
I can’t imagine that either. However, it was very smart of Polly to recognize that the word of her girls was not worth as much to the jurors as the word of the hotel staff.
I agree with all the above. And I found it so strange the way Lucky acted in the courtroom in his defense. Was he so egotistical that he thought the jury would buy his nonsense? Or he thought they would be too petrified to find him and all his thugs guilty?
Dewey may have thought that the prostitution ring charges wouldn’t put Luciano away for the long term. I think now, whatever law enforcement can pin on a criminal, they do that and try for harsher crimes to be brought later but I’m not sure.
He thought his tactics of striking fear in people would get him off!
Susan, I fully agree with you -
To add to the comments below, there is also a credibility problem of the witnesses - women that are paid for sex are not viewed as criminals themselves and less humans because of their line of work. plus many are addicts that have a limited grasp of reality.
I’m not sure initially he saw prostitution as a significant crime. He only agreed to use it when it was the best way to nail Luciano. He was also concerned about using any prostitutes as witnesses as he didn’t believe they would be seen as credible.
In a way, this reminded me of The Untouchables and The Firm. Like tax evasion, prostitution does not have the same appeal as murder and racketeering. I read the last half of this book in one sitting because I got so caught up in the trial and loved how Polly’s read and assistance proved so invaluable.
Lucky was indeed lucky that he was not prosecuted for his involvement in prostitution. Dewey was more interested in other crimes that were committed by Lucky and his mob friends. I don’t necessarily agree with Dewey’s motives. In today’s world, I believe sex crimes seem to be hidden better, but horrible abuse towards women is rampant and many times not prosecuted as such.
As an attorney, I was appalled that all of Luciano’s $$ wasn’t enough to buy him competent counsel!
As others have noted, the reluctance to pursue the prostitution case was a classic case of misogyny, patriarchy, and a failure to properly undertand the nature of the crimes involved & who the real victims are. Dewey was a man of his times and I would hope that today a DA would be better reducated & more aware of the significance of such an operation.
Luciano’s rise to power as the most ruthless Boss of all the families was based on survival lies, denials, and murder. He was only concerned about one person’s life no matter who he betrayed.