Fred Roti
Encyclopedia
Fred B. Roti was a powerful and long serving Alderman
of Chicago
's First Ward. A federal jury convicted Roti on 11 counts of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, bribery and extortion.
neighborhood where he spent his entire life. Fred Roti was the son of Bruno Roti, Sr., the first capo
of what became the 26th Street/Chinatown crew of the Chicago Outfit
. Roti, Sr., owned a grocery store on the 2100 block of S. Wentworth Avenue, less than six blocks away from Alphonse "Al" "Scarface" Capone
's headquarters, at 2135 S. Michigan Avenue. Fred's father, Bruno Roti, Sr., was known as "Bruno the Bomber" for his work as a gangster
alongside Al Capone, and was arrested twice in murder
investigations.
The diminutive Fred Roti was nicknamed "Peanuts" because of his size and called "Freddie" by his friends.
Fred Roti was also the brother-in-law of Frank "Skids" Caruso, the capo who took over from Roti, Sr.
Fred Roti's start with the City was inauspicious. He shoveled asphalt before entering World War II
with the US Navy, as a machine-gunner on a boat in Europe
. On his return to Chicago
, Roti became active in the Democratic Party
, serving as a precinct captain
and held a succession of mundane city and county jobs.
state senator
(1951–1957). At the time of his slating by the 1st Ward Democrats, Roti was described as "a state revenue department investigator and precinct captain." Roti faced nominal Republican
opposition. Roti was elected state senator from the 1st District on November 7, 1950.
In the state legislature Roti was a member of a bipartisan bloc of West Side
lawmakers linked with hoodlum
s known as, "The West Side Bloc." He was a consistent opponent of anti-crime bills.
When his seat was lost to redistricting, he retired from the state legislature
, returned to precinct work, and took a patronage
job as a drain inspector with the City Department of Water and Sewers.
.
, bribery
and extortion. To convict him of racketeering, the jury had to find him guilty of two out of three "fixing" charges. And it did, convicting him of taking $10,000 for influencing a civil court case and $7,500 to support a routine zoning
change, both in 1989. But the jury cleared him of the most serious allegation: sharing in $72,500 for fixing a Chinatown murder trial in 1981. Roti was sentenced to a four year prison sentence; ordered to pay for his room and board there- $1,492 a month; a $75,000 fine; ordered to pay back, in restitution, the $17,500 in bribes, after he was freed, to cover the cost of his three-year term of supervised release - $1,318 a year. Roti served three years in minimum security prison in Oxford, Wis. After that, Roti had six months in a work-release program with the Salvation Army
.
On August 11, 1999, in a civil racketeering complaint against the Chicago Laborers District Council (CLDC), the Justice Department
described Roti as:
Roti, by then seriously ill, never commented on the allegations.
, and second, Roti was instrumental in getting the Chicago Outfit's main plant, William Hanhardt, now a convicted jewel thief, due to be released from prison in 2012, in the position of Chief of Detectives.
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
's First Ward. A federal jury convicted Roti on 11 counts of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, bribery and extortion.
Background
Roti, one of 11 children, was born in an apartment over a store in Chinatown, the Near South SideNear South Side, Chicago
The Near South Side is a community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is located just south of the downtown central business district, the Loop, which is itself a community area...
neighborhood where he spent his entire life. Fred Roti was the son of Bruno Roti, Sr., the first capo
Caporegime
A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to just a capo, is a term used in the Mafia for a high ranking made member of a crime family who heads a "crew" of soldiers and has major social status and influence in the organization...
of what became the 26th Street/Chinatown crew of the Chicago Outfit
Chicago Outfit
The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
. Roti, Sr., owned a grocery store on the 2100 block of S. Wentworth Avenue, less than six blocks away from Alphonse "Al" "Scarface" Capone
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
's headquarters, at 2135 S. Michigan Avenue. Fred's father, Bruno Roti, Sr., was known as "Bruno the Bomber" for his work as a gangster
Gangster
A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Some gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from mob and the suffix -ster....
alongside Al Capone, and was arrested twice in murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
investigations.
The diminutive Fred Roti was nicknamed "Peanuts" because of his size and called "Freddie" by his friends.
Fred Roti was also the brother-in-law of Frank "Skids" Caruso, the capo who took over from Roti, Sr.
Fred Roti's start with the City was inauspicious. He shoveled asphalt before entering World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
with the US Navy, as a machine-gunner on a boat in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. On his return to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Roti became active in the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, serving as a precinct captain
Precinct captain
A precinct captain is an individual who acts as the direct link between a political party organization and the voters in an election precinct...
and held a succession of mundane city and county jobs.
Illinois State Senator (1950–1956)
Roti served as an IllinoisIllinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
state senator
Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the state of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. The Illinois Senate is made up of 59 senators elected from...
(1951–1957). At the time of his slating by the 1st Ward Democrats, Roti was described as "a state revenue department investigator and precinct captain." Roti faced nominal Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
opposition. Roti was elected state senator from the 1st District on November 7, 1950.
In the state legislature Roti was a member of a bipartisan bloc of West Side
Neighborhoods in Chicago
Cartographers distinguish between over 200 neighborhoods and 77 community areas in the City of Chicago . A semi-official by the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development was created in the 1970s by researchers who went from door-to-door in Chicago, asking "What neighborhood is this?"...
lawmakers linked with hoodlum
Hoodlum
Hoodlum is a 1997 crime film that gives a fictionalized account of the gang war between the Italian/Jewish mafia alliance and the black gangsters of Harlem that took place in the late 1920s and early 1930s...
s known as, "The West Side Bloc." He was a consistent opponent of anti-crime bills.
When his seat was lost to redistricting, he retired from the state legislature
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...
, returned to precinct work, and took a patronage
Patronage
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings or popes have provided to musicians, painters, and sculptors...
job as a drain inspector with the City Department of Water and Sewers.
The "Literary" Club: "Booth One" at Counselor's Row
Roti's 1st Ward in Chicago is unique in that it includes most of the area commonly considered downtown Chicago, the "Loop," and City Hall. Roti was thus unique in having his "ward" office, and the offices of his political operation, directly across the street from his City offices in City Hall:Indictment
In 1990, after serving 23 years as Alderman (including Chairman of the Buildings Committee), Roti was indicted for racketeering and extortionExtortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
.
Conviction
On January 15, 1993, after deliberating 2½ days, a federal jury convicted Roti of taking thousands of dollars in bribes. The jury convicted him on all 11 counts of racketeering, racketeering conspiracyConspiracy (crime)
In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
, bribery
Bribery
Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
and extortion. To convict him of racketeering, the jury had to find him guilty of two out of three "fixing" charges. And it did, convicting him of taking $10,000 for influencing a civil court case and $7,500 to support a routine zoning
Zoning
Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...
change, both in 1989. But the jury cleared him of the most serious allegation: sharing in $72,500 for fixing a Chinatown murder trial in 1981. Roti was sentenced to a four year prison sentence; ordered to pay for his room and board there- $1,492 a month; a $75,000 fine; ordered to pay back, in restitution, the $17,500 in bribes, after he was freed, to cover the cost of his three-year term of supervised release - $1,318 a year. Roti served three years in minimum security prison in Oxford, Wis. After that, Roti had six months in a work-release program with the Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
.
U.S. Department of Justice: Roti a made man
In 1983, William Roemer, a former FBI agent, told the Senate permanent subcommittee on investigations that "informants continue to advise through the years {that} [former 1st ward alderman John] D'Arco and Roti were the front men for businessman Pat Marcy and for the mob."On August 11, 1999, in a civil racketeering complaint against the Chicago Laborers District Council (CLDC), the Justice Department
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
described Roti as:
Fred Roti was convicted of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations ActRacketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations ActThe Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization...
(RICO) conspiracy, bribery and extortion regarding the fixing of criminal cases in the Circuit Court of Cook CountyCook County, IllinoisCook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, including murder cases involving organized crimeOrganized crimeOrganized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
members or associates and was sentenced to 48 months' imprisonment. Roti was released from prison in 1997. As First Ward alderman, Roti was a key political patronage boss and, along with his co‑defendant Pat MarcyPat MarcyPat Marcy was a legendary political boss with great influence over the Illinois Democratic Party. According to Federal prosecutors, as well as informants Robert Cooley and Michael J. Corbitt, he was also a trusted and valued associate of the Chicago Outfit...
, a fixer for the Chicago OutfitChicago OutfitThe Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
. Roti has directly participated in interfering with the rights of the members of Laborers' International Union of North AmericaLaborers' International Union of North AmericaThe Laborers' International Union of North America is an American and Canadian labor union formed in 1903. As of March 31, 2010, they have about 632,000 members, members, about 80,000 of which are in Canada.The current general president is Terence M...
in the selection of their officers and officials in that he has improperly influenced the selection of officers of the CLDC and has been responsible for the pervasive hiring of mobster Angelo "the Hook" LaPietraAngelo J. LaPietraAngelo J. "The Hook" LaPietra was a Chicago mobster and member of the Chicago Outfit, involved in extensive loansharking operations in the city's First Ward during the 1970s and 80s. He earned his nickname "The Hook" due to the way he murdered his victims—those that did not, or could not pay up...
's crew members and associates at the Chicago Streets and Sanitation Department. Roti is a "Made MemberMade manA made man, also known as a Mafioso , made guy, man of honor, or uomo d'onore , is someone who has been officially inducted into the Sicilian or American Mafia . They may also be referred to by some as a goodfella or wiseguy...
" of the Chicago OutfitChicago OutfitThe Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
.
Roti, by then seriously ill, never commented on the allegations.
Legacy
Roti's legacy lives on through the many people he got on the city of Chicago's payroll. Two other Roti accomplishments deserve mention. First, Alderman Roti led the fight for Chicago's handgun ban in Chicago's City CouncilChicago City Council
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 aldermen elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms...
, and second, Roti was instrumental in getting the Chicago Outfit's main plant, William Hanhardt, now a convicted jewel thief, due to be released from prison in 2012, in the position of Chief of Detectives.