Al Capone

**Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone** (January 17, 1899&nbsp;– January 25, 1947) was an Italian-American organized crime leader. He was born in 1899 in Brooklyn, New York; moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1920; and died in 1947 on Palm Island in Miami Beach, Florida. At the time, he was perhaps the most famous gangster in the country.

In 1931 Capone was arrested, convicted, and imprisoned for not paying income taxes to the federal government. The attack left scars and the press gave Capone the nickname "Scarface" (which he hated).

After the attack, Capone tried to hide the scarred left side of his face any time he was photographed. He claimed the injuries were wounds he got fighting in World War I. (This is a term for a sharp dresser: a person who wears fancy, fashionable clothing). 

According to the FBI:In the “roaring twenties,” Al Capone ruled an empire of crime in [Chicago]: gambling, prostitution, bootlegging, bribery, narcotics trafficking, robbery, “protection” rackets, and murder.Some estimates say Capone's Chicago Outlet pulled in around $100 million a year.

## Prison 
 at Eastern State Penitentiary]]
In 1931, Capone's time as an organized crime leader ended. That year, the United States government arrested, tried, and convicted him for not paying federal income tax. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison. 

Just after Alcatraz Federal Prison opened in 1934, Capone was transferred there.  

Capone stayed at Alcatraz for five years. Due to his good behavior, he was permitted to play banjo in the Alcatraz prison band, the Rock Islanders, which gave regular Sunday concerts for other inmates. Capone also transcribed the song "Madonna Mia", creating his own arrangement as a tribute to his wife Mae.    file from Alcatraz]]

## Illness 
At Alcatraz, it became increasingly obvious that Capone's cognitive health was worsening. In February 1938 he was formally diagnosed with neurosyphilis: syphilis had spread to his brain. His mental abilities declined, and he spent the last year of his Alcatraz sentence in the hospital section, confused and disoriented.  

In 1939 the U.S. government decided to free Capone early. His health was poor and worsening quickly from advanced syphilis. He was released after serving seven and a half years in prison, paying all of the taxes he owed, and paying fines.  

After he was released, Capone's health continued to worsen. He developed paresis (muscle weakness or paralysis). had neurosyphilis (syphilis in the brain)]]

## Release and death 
After he was released from prison, he was transferred to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for syphilis treatment. Because of his bad reputation, Johns Hopkins refused to treat him, but Baltimore's Union Memorial Hospital did. Capone was grateful for the compassionate care that he received and donated two Japanese weeping cherry trees to Union Memorial Hospital in 1939. 

After he left the hospital, he travelled to his mansion in Palm Island, Florida. In 1942, after mass production of penicillin began in the United States, Capone was one of the first American patients treated by the new drug. Though it was too late for him to reverse the damage to his brain, it did slow down the progression of the disease. His body was transported back to Chicago a week later and a private funeral was held. 

He was originally buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago. In 1950, Capone's remains, along with those of his father, Gabriele, and brother, Frank, were moved to Mount Carmel Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.

## Depictions in media 
Michael Jackson wrote a song called "Al Capone" for his 1987 album *Bad*.  The song was not released on the album.  However, when *Bad* was re-released on its 25th anniversary, the song was included on the album's second CD.

## References
* 2.“Al Capone.” World of Criminal Justice. Gale, (2002). Biography in Context.Web. 10-June 2014

## Other websites
*Mario Gomes' site on everything related to Al Capone
*South Beach Magazine The Un-Welcomed Visitor: Al Capone in Miami. (with photos)
*Complete FBI files on Al Capone
*Little Chicago: Capone in Johnson City, Tennessee 
*Al Capone at the Crime Library
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