The Commission (mafia)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The National Crime Commission, or 'The Commission', is the governing body of the mafia in the United States. Although its makeup has changed several times since its creation, the bosses of the Five Families remain the core membership of The Commission.
Contents |
[edit] Reasons for The Commission's Formation
[edit] Pre-Commission Situation
The Commission was established in 1931 by Lucky Luciano in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The purpose was the desire to replace the old Sicilian mafia regime, modeled after the Roman Empire. This sort of system, set up by the New York Don Salvatore Maranzano, resulted in the most powerful boss emposing his will by brute force, assuming the mantle of [[capo dei tutti capi]] ("The Boss of All Bosses") and ruling over all the other American bosses.
This old system had led to a number of costly mob wars, and, in the aftermath of the Castellammarese War, Luciano came to the realization that some structure was needed for the various mob families to settle their differences without bloodshed, thus benefitting the business interests of all and allowing the mob to stay out of the public eye.[1]
The answer, Luciano reasoned, was a sort-of mob board of directors--to be known as "The Commission"--that would oversee all La Cosa Nostra activities in the US and serve to mediate conflicts between families.[2] Naturally, the savvy Luciano assumed the position of chairman. They would often meet every five years or when needed.
[edit] Post-Formation
The formation of the Commission did not stop the gang wars from taking place, but it did force them to be on a smaller scale and at fewer intervals. The reason for this was that often when one Family declared war on another, agressor Family would suddenly find themselves at war with all the Commision from mutual defence factions.
To settle wars or internal conflicts the Commission would often appoint a new Don of the Family and have the usurper or the previous Don assasinated. An example of this is the case of the Bonanno Family in the Bonanno War.
[edit] The Commission Today
The Commission is still reported to exist today, though its current membership is restricted solely to the bosses of the Five Families and its activities, like much of the mafia's in general, have receded from public view as a matter of necessity.[3]
[edit] Structure
The Commission was originally comprised of seven family bosses: the leaders of New York's Five Families (Luciano, Joseph Bonanno, Joe Profaci, Vincent Mangano, and Tommy Gagliano) and the "Fathers" from Chicago (Al Capone), representing everything in the Western United States, and Buffalo (Stefano Magaddino).[4]
Non-Italian mobsters such as Meyer Lansky and Louis Buchalter were also allowed membership in the syndicate, but governing (voting) power was strictly restricted to Italian members.[citation needed] Lansky however, who was made the official Financial Advisor to the Commission, was able to exercise a good deal of influence thanks to his close relationship with Luciano, evinced by Lansky's talking Luciano out of putting out a contract on Bugsy Siegel on two occasions.[citation needed]
[edit] Executive Position
There was no 'ruler' of the Commission, but there was a nominated Chairman or Head of the National Commission. This was used as a substitute to the role of Capo de tutti capi, as that had the connotations of the old 'Mustache Pete' system of one man rule. However, after the Havana Conference, Luciano took this title anyways so to solidify his rule after being deported from the United States by the actions of Governor Thomas Dewey.
[edit] Judicial
The enforcement arm of The Commission was the notorious Murder, Inc. operation out of Brooklyn. This service had to be authorized by the Commission by vote first, along with the number of targets. Even then the number of targets was usualy limited to one or a few individuals. This way the Commission would be avoiding a confusing situation that could result in a war, and minimize possible press exposure.
[edit] Further reading
- Bernstein, Lee. The Greatest Menace: Organized Crime in Cold War America. Boston: UMass Press, 2002. ISBN 1-55849-345-X
- Bonanno, Bill. Bound by Honor: A Mafioso's Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999. ISBN 0-312-97147-8
- Bonanno, Joseph. A Man of Honor: The Autobiography of Joseph Bonanno. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2003. ISBN 0312979231
- Capeci, Jerry. The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia. Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002. ISBN 0-02-864225-2
- Downey, Patrick. Gangster City: The History of the New York Underworld, 1900-1935. Barricade Books, 2004. ISBN 156980267X
- Jacobs, James B., Coleen Friel and Robert Radick. Gotham Unbound: How New York City Was Liberated from the Grip of Organized Crime. New York: NYU Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8147-4247-5
- Jacobs, James B., Christopher Panarella and Jay Worthington. Busting the Mob: The United States Vs. Cosa Nostra. New York: NYU Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8147-4230-0
- Maas, Peter. Underboss: Sammy the Bull Gravano's Story of Life in the Mafia. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997. ISBN 0-06-093096-9
- Mannion, James. 101 Things You Didn't Know About The Mafia: The Lowdown on Dons, Wiseguys, Squealers and Backstabbers. Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media, 2005. ISBN 1-59337-267-1
- Milhorn, H. Thomas. Crime: Computer Viruses to Twin Towers. Boca Raton, Florida: Universal Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-58112-489-9
- Raab, Selwyn. Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires. New York: St. Martin Press, 2005. ISBN 0-312-30094-8
- Reppetto, Thomas A. American Mafia: A History of Its Rise to Power. New York: Henry Holt & Co., 2004. ISBN 0-8050-7798-7
- Saggio, Frankie and Fred Rosen. Born to the Mob: The True-Life Story of the Only Man to Work for All Five of New York's Mafia Families. New York: Thunder Mouth Press, 2004. ISBN 1-56025-559-5
- Schatzberg, Rufus, Robert J.Kelly and Ko-lin Chin, ed. Handbook of Organized Crime in the United States. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1994. ISBN 0-313-28366-4
