See the trouble and
disgrace main page, as well as the FAQ and the Political
Graveyard privacy policy, for important explanations and
disclaimers.
in chronological order
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William Adams Richardson (1821-1896) —
of Massachusetts.
Born in Tyngsborough, Middlesex
County, Mass., November
2, 1821.
Republican. Probate judge in Massachusetts, 1856; U.S.
Secretary of the Treasury, 1873-74; while Secretary of the
Treasury, he hired John D. Sanborn to collect unpaid taxes and
receive a commission, some of which went as a kickback to
Richardson himself; this arrangement caused an uproar,
and Richardson resigned
under fire; Judge
of U.S. Court of Claims, 1874-96.
Unitarian.
Died in Washington,
D.C., October
19, 1896 (age 74 years, 352
days).
Interment at Oak
Hill Cemetery, Washington, D.C.
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Harry E. Mackenzie —
of Bethel, Fairfield
County, Conn.
Republican. Alternate delegate to Republican National Convention from
Connecticut, 1928,
1932,
1936.
Charged
in May, 1938, along with Mayor T.
Frank Hayes and 25 others, with conspiracy to cheat
and defraud the city of Waterbury of more than a million dollars;
admitted that he received large fees for lobbying,
and paid half back as a kickback to the other conspirators; pleaded
guilty in November 1938, and testified against the other
defendants; sentenced
to nine months in jail.
Burial location unknown.
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Frank D. McKay (1883-1965) —
of Grand Rapids, Kent
County, Mich.
Born in Grand Rapids, Kent
County, Mich., November
4, 1883.
Republican. Financier;
political boss who dominated Republican politics in Michigan for
years; delegate to Republican National Convention from Michigan, 1920,
1928,
1932
(alternate), 1936,
1940,
1944;
Michigan
state treasurer, 1925-30; investigated
by a grand jury in 1931 over his handling
of state funds while Treasurer; member of Republican
National Committee from Michigan, 1940-44; subject of three
federal grand jury investigations
in 1940 over alleged fraud,
extortion
and kickbacks; indicted
in 1944 for bribery
of state legislators; hired a Purple
Gang figure to murder
the star witness, State Sen. Warren
G. Hooper, and the case collapsed; charged
in 1945, along with William
McKeighan, with conspiracy to violate
state liquor laws; tried in
1946; the judge directed a verdict of not guilty.
Died in Miami Beach, Dade County (now Miami-Dade
County), Fla., January
12, 1965 (age 81 years, 69
days).
Entombed at Greenwood
Cemetery, Grand Rapids, Mich.
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Ernest King Bramblett (1901-1966) —
also known as Ernest K. Bramblett —
of Pacific Grove, Monterey
County, Calif.
Born in Fresno, Fresno
County, Calif., April
25, 1901.
Republican. Insurance
business; mayor
of Pacific Grove, Calif., 1938-46; U.S.
Representative from California, 1947-55 (11th District 1947-53,
13th District 1953-55).
Protestant.
Member, Phi
Delta Kappa; Elks; Moose; Rotary;
Freemasons;
Scottish
Rite Masons; Knights
Templar; Shriners.
Investigated
by a federal grand jury in Washington over payroll padding in his
office; he had hired his
wife, received kickbacks from employees who did no work,
and made false
statements to the House disbursing officer; indicted
on 18 counts in June 1953; pleaded not guilty; tried in
February 1954; convicted
on seven counts; his conviction was stayed pending appeal, but
ultimately upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court; fined
$5,000, placed on one-year probation,
and separately required to pay restitution.
Died December
27, 1966 (age 65 years, 246
days).
Burial location unknown.
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Hugh Joseph Addonizio (1914-1981) —
also known as Hugh J. Addonizio —
of Newark, Essex
County, N.J.
Born in Newark, Essex
County, N.J., January
31, 1914.
Democrat. Served in the U.S. Army during World War II;
vice-president, A & C Tailoring
Co.; U.S.
Representative from New Jersey 11th District, 1949-62; mayor of
Newark, N.J., 1962-70; defeated, 1970; delegate to Democratic
National Convention from New Jersey, 1964.
Catholic.
Italian
ancestry. Member, Holy
Name Society; Veterans of
Foreign Wars; American
Legion; Urban
League; NAACP; Elks; Lions; Kiwanis;
Rotary.
Indicted
in federal court, December, 1969, along with Municipal Judge Anthony
Giuliano, other city officials, and reputed organized
crime leader, Anthony 'Tony Boy' Boiardo, on extortion
and income
tax evasion charges
over a scheme to share kickbacks from a sewer contracting
company; pleaded not guilty; tried;
during the trial a witness identified him as recipient of thousands
of dollars in bribes;
convicted
in July, 1970; sentenced
to ten years in prison
and fined
$25,000; released in 1979.
Died in Red Bank, Monmouth
County, N.J., February
2, 1981 (age 67 years, 2
days).
Interment at Gate
of Heaven Cemetery, East Hanover, N.J.
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Anthony Giuliano (c.1897-1970) —
of Newark, Essex
County, N.J.
Born in Newark, Essex
County, N.J., about 1897.
Republican. Lawyer;
member of New
Jersey state house of assembly from Essex County, 1927; candidate
for U.S.
Representative from New Jersey, 1948; Essex
County Clerk, 1955; delegate to Republican National Convention
from New Jersey, 1956;
municipal judge in New Jersey, 1968-69.
Indicted
in federal court, December, 1969, along with Newark Mayor Hugh
J. Addonizio, other city officials, and reputed organized
crime leader Anthony 'Tony Boy' Boiardo, on extortion
and income
tax evasion charges
over a scheme to share kickbacks from a sewer contracting
company; became ill and died before he could be arraigned.
Died, from a heart
attack, in Newark, Essex
County, N.J., February
4, 1970 (age about 73
years).
Burial location unknown.
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Relatives: Son
of Mary Freda. |
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John T. Gregorio (1928-2013) —
also known as "The Lion of Linden" —
of Linden, Union
County, N.J.
Born in Staten Island, Richmond
County, N.Y., February
6, 1928.
Democrat. Florist;
mayor
of Linden, N.J., 1968-83, 1991-2006; defeated, 2006; shot
at in his car, in March 1968; two days later, his house was firebombed;
member of New
Jersey state house of assembly 21st District, 1974-77; indicted
in April 1975 on perjury
and fraud charges,
over his purchase of a vacant lot from Elizabethtown Gas Company,
while conspiring to falsify
documents to conceal
his involvement as buyer; later charged
with extorting
a $25,000 kickback from a building contractor on a high school
project; following jury selection, the charges were dismissed in
February 1976; member of New
Jersey state senate, 1978-83 (21st District 1978-81, 20th
District 1982-83); indicted
in September 1981 on charges
of income
tax evasion, concealing
his interest in two "go-go bars", and for failing to
enforce state alcohol laws; convicted
in December 1982 of conspiracy to commit official
misconduct, but found not guilty on other charges.
Died, from leukemia,
in Trinitas Hospital,
Elizabeth, Union
County, N.J., October
23, 2013 (age 85 years, 259
days).
Burial location unknown.
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Charles Coles Diggs Jr. (1922-1998) —
also known as Charles C. Diggs, Jr. —
of Detroit, Wayne
County, Mich.
Born in Detroit, Wayne
County, Mich., December
2, 1922.
Democrat. Served in the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II; mortician;
member of Michigan
state senate 3rd District, 1951-54; U.S.
Representative from Michigan 13th District, 1955-80; delegate to
Democratic National Convention from Michigan, 1956,
1960,
1964,
1968,
1976
(alternate); candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan.
Baptist.
African
ancestry. Member, Elks; Freemasons;
American
Legion.
First
chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus; charged
in March 1978 with taking kickbacks from staff whose salaries
he raised; convicted,
October 7, 1978, on eleven counts of mail fraud and filing false
payroll forms; insisted he had done nothing wrong, and was re-elected
while awaiting sentencing; censured
by the House on July 31, 1979; sentenced
to three years in prison
and served 14 months.
Died, of a stroke,
at Greater Southwest Community Hospital,
Washington,
D.C., August
24, 1998 (age 75 years, 265
days).
Interment at Detroit
Memorial Park East, Warren, Mich.
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Vincent Riccio (born c.1920) —
of Brooklyn, Kings
County, N.Y.
Born about 1920.
Member of New York
state assembly 51st District, 1969-74; indicted
on charges
of taking kickbacks from holders of no-show state jobs; convicted
of larceny in May 1981; sentenced
to one year in jail.
Presumed deceased.
Burial location unknown.
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William Vincent Musto (1917-2006) —
also known as William V. Musto —
of Union City, Hudson
County, N.J.
Born in West Hoboken (now part of Union City), Hudson
County, N.J., March
27, 1917.
Democrat. Served in the U.S. Army during World War II; member of New
Jersey state house of assembly from Hudson County, 1947-65; mayor
of Union City, N.J., 1962-70, 1974-82; delegate to Democratic
National Convention from New Jersey, 1964,
1976;
member of New
Jersey state senate, 1966-82 (District 12 1966-73, 33rd District
1974-82); indicted
in 1981 on federal charges
that he took part in a scheme to collect $440,000 in kickbacks
from a construction company connected to organized
crime; convicted
in May 1982.
Member, American
Legion; Veterans of
Foreign Wars; Elks.
Died February
27, 2006 (age 88 years, 337
days).
Burial location unknown.
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Lee Alexander (1927-1996) —
of Syracuse, Onondaga
County, N.Y.
Born in Jersey City, Hudson
County, N.J., May 18,
1927.
Democrat. Candidate for U.S.
Representative from New York 34th District, 1962; mayor
of Syracuse, N.Y., 1970-85; candidate for U.S.
Senator from New York, 1974; delegate to Democratic National
Convention from New York, 1980;
member, Arrangements Committee, 1984.
Was indicted
in July 1987 over a $1.5 million kickback scandal,
and pleaded
guilty in January 1988 to racketeering and tax
evasion charges;
served six years in prison.
Died, of cancer,
in Syracuse, Onondaga
County, N.Y., December
25, 1996 (age 69 years, 221
days).
Burial location unknown.
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Relatives: Son
of Peter Alexander and Rita (Rouatcos) Alexander; married 1957 to
Elizabeth Strates. |
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William James McCuen (c.1943-2000) —
also known as Bill McCuen —
of Hot Springs, Garland
County, Ark.; Heber Springs, Cleburne
County, Ark.
Born in Fort Smith, Sebastian
County, Ark., about 1943.
Democrat. School
teacher; Arkansas
land commissioner, 1981-85; secretary
of state of Arkansas, 1985-94; defeated in primary, 1994;
candidate for U.S.
Representative from Arkansas 4th District, 1992.
After leaving office as Secretary of State, he admitted
accepting kickbacks from two supporters he gave jobs, and not
paying taxes on the money. He also admitted
to conspiring with a political consultant to split $53,560 embezzled
from the state in a sham transaction. He was indicted
on corruption charges
in 1995. On January 5, 1996, he pleaded
guilty to felony counts of tax
evasion and accepting a kickback; he pleaded no
contest to a misdemeanor count of trading
in public office. Sentenced
to 17 years in prison,
and fined.
Released on parole (due to illness) in February 1999.
Died of colon
cancer and a stroke,
in Heber Springs, Cleburne
County, Ark., September
9, 2000 (age about 57
years).
Interment somewhere
in Van Buren, Ark.
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Arthur E. Teele (1946-2005) —
also known as Art Teele —
of Florida.
Born in Prince
George's County, Md., May 14,
1946.
Republican. Served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam war; lawyer;
director, U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration, 1981-83;
candidate for Presidential Elector for Florida; as Miami city
commissioner in 1997-2004, he chaired the Community Redevelopment
Agency (CRA); an investigation
of corruption in the agency, started in 2003, led to charges
that he had accepted $135,000 in kickbacks from two
construction companies; as a result, he was removed from
office in 2004 by Gov. Jeb
Bush; in August, 2004, when he and his wife were under
surveillance, he drove his
car at a police detective in an attempt to run him
over, and also threatened
to kill police officers who had been following his wife during
the investigation; convicted
in March 2005 on charges
related to this incident; indicted
on July 14, 2005, on federal conspiracy and money
laundering charges, over a scheme to fraudulently obtain
contracts for electrical work at the Miami International Airport
through a "minority-owned" shell company; published police reports
revealed that he had put his mistress
on the CRA payroll, that he regularly bought and used cocaine,
and that he frequently made use of a male prostitute.
Church
of God in Christ. African
ancestry. Member, Kappa
Alpha Psi; NAACP; Freemasons.
Came to the offices
of the Miami Herald newspaper, and shot himself
in the head with a semiautomatic pistol; he died two hours later in
the trauma unit of Jackson Memorial Hospital,
Miami, Miami-Dade
County, Fla., July 27,
2005 (age 59 years, 74
days).
Interment at Culley's MeadowWood Memorial Park, Tallahassee, Fla.
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Anthony Russo —
of Hoboken, Hudson
County, N.J.
Democrat. Mayor
of Hoboken, N.J., 1993-2001; defeated, 2001.
Pleaded
guilty in 2004 to extorting
kickbacks from an accounting firm; sentenced
to 30 months in federal prison.
Still living as of 2004.
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William Shannon Lerach (b. 1946) —
also known as William S. Lerach; Bill
Lerach —
of Rancho Santa Fe, San Diego
County, Calif.
Born in 1946.
Democrat. Lawyer;
delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1996.
Plead
guilty in 2007 to federal charges
of conspiracy to commit obstruction
of justice and making false
declarations under oath in connection with a kickback
scheme; sentenced
to two years in prison, fined $250,000, and ordered to do 1,000 hours
of community service.
Still living as of 2010.
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Melvyn I. Weiss (b. 1935) —
of Oyster Bay Cove, Nassau
County, Long Island, N.Y.
Born in Bronx, Bronx
County, N.Y., August
1, 1935.
Democrat. Lawyer;
alternate delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York,
1996.
Pleaded
guilty in 2008 to federal charges of making illegal
kickbacks to clients to induce them to sue; sentenced
to 30 months in prison,
fined
$250,000, and ordered to pay restitution
of $9.75 million.
Still living as of 2010.
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C. Ray Nagin —
of New Orleans, Orleans
Parish, La.
Born in New Orleans, Orleans
Parish, La.
Democrat. Mayor
of New Orleans, La., 2002-10; delegate to Democratic National
Convention from Louisiana, 2008;
indicted
in January 2013 for accepting bribes
and kickbacks in connection with city contracts.
African
ancestry.
Still living as of 2014.
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