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Appeals Court: Reputed Mobsters Must Stand Trial

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Jun 13, 2007 10:35 am US/Central

Appeals Court: Reputed Mobsters Must Stand Trial

Marcello, Calabrese Said They Were Already Convicted Of Same Crimes

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CHICAGO (CBS) ― Two men suspected of involvement in a mob conspiracy are going to trial, even though they say they already have been convicted of the crimes.

James Marcello and Frank Calabrese Sr. were convicted of involvement in a racketeering scheme more than a decade ago. But now they are charged with an entirely different conspiracy, Judge Richard Posner of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a nine-page majority opinion.

He said the latest conspiracy charges outlined a completely new case even though some of the same criminal acts were part of the indictments when the two reputed mob bosses previously were convicted.

"We have no basis at this early stage for thinking that the government will fail to prove separate conspiracies," the appeals court said in the 2-1 ruling.

But it said the men could have grounds for appeal if new evidence "differs only trivially" from the evidence used to obtain the previous convictions.

Marcello and Calabrese are among 14 mobsters implicated in the Family Secrets case. They are accused in at least 18 murders going back to 1970. Those charged also include Joey "The Clown" Lombardo, long known as one of the top leaders of organized crime in the Chicago area.

Marcello and Calabrese are implicated in a guilty plea by Calabrese's brother, Nicholas Calabrese.

The unsolved killings include that of Tony "The Ant" Spilotro, long the Chicago mob's man in Las Vegas.

Spilotro was the basis for the Joe Pesci character in the movie "Casino." He was found buried with his brother in an Indiana cornfield.

The upcoming trial is expected to last four months and stems from a long-term FBI investigation. It is considered one of the biggest mob trials in Chicago in a number of years.

Marcello and Calabrese have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Marcello and eight other men were charged in a 1992 indictment with conspiring to conduct the affairs of the Carlisi street crew by means of numerous illegal acts including extortion, intimidation, arson, murder plots, loan sharking, tampering and gambling between 1979 and 1990.

He was convicted in 1993 and sentenced to 12 1/2 years in federal prison.

Calabrese was charged with six others in a 1995 indictment alleging a similar conspiracy involving the Calabrese street crew. He pleaded guilty in 1997 and was sentenced to almost 10 years in federal prison.

The two men noted that there was considerable overlap between the conspiracies in which they previously were convicted and the new one alleged in the Operation Family Secrets indictment involving the Chicago Outfit. Federal prosecutors argued that the Chicago Outfit was a separate criminal enterprise from either the Carlisi or Calabrese street crew.

While Posner and Judge Diane Sykes agreed that the alleged conspiracy was something new, Judge Diane Wood said in a minority opinion she would have removed the overlapping allegations against the two men from the indictment. But she said she would still make them go to trial on the allegations that don't overlap.

(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.