Thomas Licavoli

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Thomas "Yonnie" Licavoli (February 9, 1904-September 17, 1973) was a St. Louis gangster and bootlegger during Prohibition and, with his brother Peter Joseph Licavoli, Sr. and cousin James Licavoli, would control criminal operations in Detroit and northeastern Ohio for almost thirty years.

Growing up in the slums of St. Louis, Missouri, Licavoli was enrolled Christian Brothers College with the hopes of his immigrant parents to study for the priesthood. However, he soon left school to join the US Navy, before going AWOL and joining the Purple Gang. Bringing his brother Peter to Detroit as his lieutenant, by 1930, the Licavoli's had established themselves as a formidable force in the cities underworld with a large-scale liquor smuggling operation across the Detroit River. He would later be convicted along with Frank Cammerata of carrying a concealed weapon in Windsor, Ontario and served three years imprisonment in Canada.

Attempting to expand their operations in Toledo, Ohio, the Licavolis were confronted by bootlegger Jackie Kennedy. The two sides fought a violent gang war which would eventually end in Kennedy's death in July 1933. Licavoli would later be arrested for Kennedy's murder and three other gangland slayings. Convicted in 1934, Licavoli was sentenced to life imprisonment despite attempts by Cleveland mobster Al "The Owl" Polizzi to secure a parole.

Licavoli remained in the Ohio State Prison until 1969 when Governor James A. Rhodes commuted his sentence from first to second degree murder making him eligible for parole. Rhodes's decision was heavily criticized by the media and was possibly a contributing factor in his defeat for the Republican Senatorial nomination in 1970.

In 1971, the Ohio Adult Parole Authority agreed to release Licavoli due to poor health. He retired to private life, living in the Columbus, OH suburb of Gahanna until his death on September 17, 1973.

[edit] Further reading

Capeci, Jerry. The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia. Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002. ISBN 0-02-864225-2
Porrello, Rick. To Kill the Irishman: The War That Crippled the Mafia. Novelty, Ohio: Next Hat Press, 2004. ISBN 0-9662508-9-3
Reppetto, Thomas A. American Mafia: A History of Its Rise to Power. New York: Henry Holt & Co., 2004. ISBN 0-8050-7798-7
Turner, William W. Hoover's FBI. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 1993.