Robert Cooley
Encyclopedia
Robert Cooley is a former Mafia
lawyer, government informant
and author of the 2004 autobiography, "When Corruption was King
."
. His father was a Chicago Police
officer
, as were both of his grandfathers - both of whom had died in the line of duty.
After graduating from Mt. Carmel High School, Cooley first worked as a Chicago patrol officer to earn his way through college and law school before becoming a criminal defense attorney. His association with Chicago Outfit
capo
Marco D'Amico
dates from his time as a Chicago police officer. He quickly developed a reputation as a lawyer who would take any necessary action to get his clients acquitted. He used legitimate means to win almost all of his jury trials, but he was also prepared to bribe judges and court officials in the corrupt Cook County court system. His success as a criminal attorney brought him both significant wealth and access to the highest levels of the Chicago Mafia, known as the Outfit. His fearlessness, love for gambling, and carefree attitude also brought him social and professional contacts with Mob street crews. He shared in their nightlife at the city’s hottest bars and played cards in their private clubs. His ability to fix the 1977 trial of a notorious Hit Man Harry Aleman
gained him entry to the Inner Circle of the First Ward, a group of Democratic Party officials, elected politicians, and mobsters who controlled Chicago’s city government and court system.
to kill
a police officer, approached the U.S. Justice Department’s Organized Crime Strike Force
and declared,
, including Outfit mobsters, politician
s, cop
s, and judge
s. It also led to significant political and judicial reform
s.
Cooley has never been part of the Witness Protection Program nor has he profited from his ties to the government. He now lives under an assumed name.
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
lawyer, government informant
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
and author of the 2004 autobiography, "When Corruption was King
When Corruption was King
When Corruption Was King: How I Helped the Mob Rule Chicago, then Brought the Outfit Down is a memoir written by Robert Cooley, a lawyer who worked for Mafia criminals in Chicago, U.S.A., but eventually turned in his former clients. The book is co-written by journalist Hillel Levin and was...
."
Early life
Cooley was born to an Irish-American family and lived in the Greater Grand Crossing section of Chicago's Southeast SideSoutheast Side, Chicago
The Southeast side of Chicago unofficially begins at about 75th Street and S. Saginaw Avenue , in other words, from Rainbow Beach southwards. It extends south and east to the city limits, generally keeping between Lake Michigan and Lake Calumet...
. His father was a Chicago Police
Chicago Police Department
The Chicago Police Department, also known as the CPD, is the principal law enforcement agency of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States, under the jurisdiction of the Mayor of Chicago. It is the largest police department in the Midwest and the second largest local law enforcement agency in the...
officer
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
, as were both of his grandfathers - both of whom had died in the line of duty.
After graduating from Mt. Carmel High School, Cooley first worked as a Chicago patrol officer to earn his way through college and law school before becoming a criminal defense attorney. His association with 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...
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...
Marco D'Amico
Marco D'Amico
Marco D'Amico is a Chicago mobster and a high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit crime organization. He admitted his role in the Chicago Outfit in federal court in 1995.- Chicago Outfit career :...
dates from his time as a Chicago police officer. He quickly developed a reputation as a lawyer who would take any necessary action to get his clients acquitted. He used legitimate means to win almost all of his jury trials, but he was also prepared to bribe judges and court officials in the corrupt Cook County court system. His success as a criminal attorney brought him both significant wealth and access to the highest levels of the Chicago Mafia, known as the Outfit. His fearlessness, love for gambling, and carefree attitude also brought him social and professional contacts with Mob street crews. He shared in their nightlife at the city’s hottest bars and played cards in their private clubs. His ability to fix the 1977 trial of a notorious Hit Man Harry Aleman
Harry Aleman
Harry "The Hook" Aleman was a Chicago mobster who was one of most feared enforcers for the Chicago Outfit during the 1970s. Aleman got the nickname "Hook" from his boxing career in high school.-Early life:...
gained him entry to the Inner Circle of the First Ward, a group of Democratic Party officials, elected politicians, and mobsters who controlled Chicago’s city government and court system.
Informant
In 1986 Cooley, becoming deeply disgusted by the people he worked for after being given a contractContract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
to kill
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...
a police officer, approached the U.S. Justice Department’s Organized Crime Strike Force
United States Organized Crime Strike Force
The United States Organized Crime Strike Force was created in the late 1960s for the purpose of finding and stopping illegal racketeering. It was formed in a congressional effort led by Robert Kennedy....
and declared,
"I'd like to help you destroy the First Ward. I want to help you destroy Pat MarcyHe proceeded to work undercover as part of an FBI probe known as Operation Gambat (for Gambling Attorney). His work ultimately sent 24 men to prisonPat 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...
."
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
, including Outfit mobsters, politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
s, cop
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
s, and judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
s. It also led to significant political and judicial reform
Reform
Reform means to put or change into an improved form or condition; to amend or improve by change of color or removal of faults or abuses, beneficial change, more specifically, reversion to a pure original state, to repair, restore or to correct....
s.
Cooley has never been part of the Witness Protection Program nor has he profited from his ties to the government. He now lives under an assumed name.