Lucky Luciano

Charles Luciano (November 11, 1896 – January 26, 1962), better known as Lucky Luciano, was a legendary mobster with a long criminal history. Luciano is considered the father of the Modern Crime Syndicate and the mastermind of the massive postwar expansion of the international heroin trade.

Formation of The Commission

With the killings of Masseria and Maranzano completed, Luciano was able to achieve his vision by joining the major organized crime groups of different ethnicities in New York in what eventually became a national crime syndicate. Unlike Maranzano, who had tried to impose himself as the "Emperor" in an organization modeled after the Roman Empire, Luciano organized a decentralized structure in which the major crime families divided up territories and spheres of activities and met, when necessary, to mediate differences between the various families. This governing body was dubbed, "The Commission." This structure served to prevent the all-out wars that had wracked the Mafia in the 1930's while allowing organized crime to grow even richer and more entrenched.

Related Topics:
National crime syndicate - 1930's

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In 1936, prosecutor Thomas E. Dewey managed to obtain Luciano's conviction for pandering, on evidence that was almost certainly perjured to some extent . Luciano was sentenced to 30 to 50 years (being sent to the Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate Dannemora) and served 10 years. Even while Dewey was prosecuting him, Luciano took steps to prevent Dutch Schultz from going through with his plan to assassinate Dewey, arranging for Schultz to be murdered when it became clear he could not be deterred.

Related Topics:
1936 - Thomas E. Dewey - Pandering - Perjured - Clinton Correctional Facility - Dannemora - Dutch Schultz

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