The Consigliere Position (long read)

[B.]

Consigliere is a household word thanks to the Godfather. You'll never hear terms like rappresentante or sottocapo except in FBI files, but consigliere has managed to become a permanent part of pop-culture. It translates to "counselor" and people have a loose idea of that in an underworld context but despite its popularity the position is painted much more one-dimensionally than it actually is.

Thanks to Tom Hagen in the Godfather and the role of Hesh on the Sopranos, people tend to apply the term liberally to non-Italians who serve some kind of advisory role to mafia bosses. This idea has appeal to the public for whatever reason, though the consigliere position is a purely organizational position in the mafia that by its very nature pertains exclusively to mafia membership and its rules / protocol.

The consigliere is rarely going to be a young, loud enforcer-type who still commits robberies, but he's also not necessarily the semi-retired elderly mafioso who whispers advice in the boss's ear. As Fish Cafaro said, the consigliere is the "powerhouse" and "strength" of the family. In my opinion, it's the single position that makes the mafia so unique in the underworld.

Consiglieri vary in power and importance, as is true for every position in the mafia. Not every boss, underboss, capodecina, soldier, or associate is exactly the same nor do they carry the same duties and function. The same applies to consigliere. By looking at credible member sources, we can see a basic foundation for the position of consigliere that has been fairly consistent for most of its history. The position has changed over the years via Americanization, though we don't have clear evidence that its basic function has changed dramatically.

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Let's look at what the members themselves have said:

- Melchiorre Allegra, Sicilian mafia pentito ~1937:

"The 'chiefs' were generally elected by the members of the group over which they were to preside and they were aided in their decisions by an 'adviser' who substituted for him in his absence because the 'adviser' was also very important if one considers that his opinion was necessary whenever a 'chief' was to make a decision."

- Greg Scarpa FBI cooperation, 1962:

Consigliere is “...neutral counsel for anyone in the family who needs his advice or services in settling disputes and he is available to represent members of the family who have been accused of violations of rules.” Also consigliere is “normally who mediates disputes between families.”

- Salvatore Piscopo, 1963 FBI informant report

"... in each 'family' there is the position of 'consulieri', or advisor, which position is not in the direct line of command, but is set more or less apart from it. The source advised that the position of 'consulieri' depends on the personalities involved, and the position itself, in different 'families,' would vary from a minor position to a very important one. The source advised that in some 'families,' the 'consulieri' would enjoy such an important position that he may even be on the 'Commissione.' The source advised further that in connection with the meeting at Apalachin, New York, on November 14, 1957, among those attending were important 'consulieri.'"

- Angelo Bruno office recording, early-mid 1960s:

Angelo Bruno is believed to have consulted with consigliere Joe Rugnetta on whether it would be acceptable to formally introduce Bruno's cousin Calogero Sinatra, Sicilian mafia boss, to the membership of the Philadelphia family. Rugnetta is said to have approved the decision and asked to be introduced to Sinatra himself.

Bruno also referred to Rugnetta as the "rappresentante" of the Calabrians in his family. Rappresentante was the preferred pronoun... whoops... preferred terminology for mafia bosses as evidenced in the extensive 1960s wiretapping of many US mafia bosses.

- John Cappello Jr. talking to informant Rocco Scafidi, FBI recording 1964:

"...the consigliere does not get too involved...a consigliere is like a lawyer. In case you got a beef or gripe or I get a beef with you, he hears the story and he tries to straighten it out."

"He is like a lawyer. In other words, he is like a peacemaker."

- Stefano Magaddino, FBI recording January 1965:

"The representative chooses the 'capodecina' he wants; he can remove the old ones whom he does not want; he can do what he wants; he can say what he wants. Then, the 'consigliere' is elected, from the 'borgata', but the boss has full powers to make the underboss he wants, whomever he wants. As I was saying, the 'capidecina' are all-important! I never took people who worked against me. I took people who worked for me. Now, if one fights, -- let me put it this way: I had to fight and never took a 'consigliere' because you must realize that with the 'consigliere' the point of departure is always this (sound of Magaddino banging on table). Don't forget. If a 'capodecina' is raised -- let's say Paolo is raised -- he may say: I don't care a damn. Heh! Wait a minute. Who is talking? Paolo, Paolo, the advisor! Then, you have two voices. (This is taken to mean that Magaddino objects to having a 'consigliere' as it tends to split the leadership.) That must not be; not if the representative is elected the way he should be elected. The 'capodecina', the underboss are -- that's my own choice! That's the way I learned it!"

"Therefore, the first thing I did was to push Carlo Gambino who was already the 'consigliere' of the 'borgata'...This was the principle - Carlo Gambino was made (boss) because he was 'consigliere.' He was pushed because he was familiar with everything; he knew the situation."''

- Frank Bompensiero, 1967 FBI informant report:

“Moceri and La Salle also indicated LCN boss Joe Zerilli of Detroit is considering retiring from active leadership. That Mike Polizzi, son-in-law of John Priziola, would take over Joe Zerilli’s job as Detroit LCN Family Boss ‘with a seat on the Commission’, that Zerilli would become a consigliere of power. (Informant speculated that Tony Zerilli would become Underboss in the Detroit Family)

- Rocco Scafidi, FBI informant reports 1969:

"... Angelo Bruno had been to see 'who he had to see' in regards to the refusal of Joseph Rugnetta, 'Consilieri', Philadelphia Family, to attend an induction ceremony previously scheduled, January 25-26, at Vineland, NJ, because the ceremony was being held in New Jersey and not in the Philadelphia area. Bruno received instructions, believed by source to have been from a member of Commission, LCN, to not create any friction in Philadelphia Family over the proposed induction of three new members."

"... Bruno's apparent instructions from Traina...was to effect that he could continue with his plans to induct new members but not to induct the members behind the back of Joseph Rugnetta and that the induction ceremony should be amicable."

"Change of induction site from Vineland, NJ, to Philadelphia, PA, is apparently being undertaken by Angelo Bruno to eliminate any friction between Bruno and Joseph Rugnetta, who heads the Calabrian element within the Philadelphia Family of LCN"

“...Rugnetta governs the Calabrese.” Scafidi states majority of Philadelphia membership is Calabrese.

In addition to being consigliere, Rugnetta identified as having a decina directly under him.

- Jimmy Fratianno quoting John Roselli, the Last Mafioso book 1980:

"Joe Batters is back in power, but he leaves the daily hassles of being boss to Joe Aiuppa. Jackie Cerone's the underboss and Batters acts as consigliere."

- Greg Scarpa FBI cooperation, 1988:

On murder of acting consigliere Jimmy Angellino: “The source noted that Angellino was well-liked and it is an unusual move to take out a consigliere.”

- Vincent Cafaro, 1988 Senate Subcommittee Investigation on Organized crime:

Senator NUNN: Can you tell us what the consigliere does in the overall family?
Mr. CAFARO: Well, the consigliere, he's the powerhouse, he's the strength, because he takes care of all the beefs from the captains. In other words, a captain can't go to a boss or the underboss unless he goes to the consigliere.
Senator NUNN: So he's really the...
Mr. CAFARO: He's the strength, he's the powerhouse.
Senator NUNN: The operating officer, so to speak?
Mr. CAFARO: Oh, yes. He, whatever decision he gives, that's it. You don't go unless it's rare that you want to go further. What I mean by "further," you want to go to the underboss or the boss. But once the consigliere gives you his decision, that's it.

- Antonino Calderone, Men of Dishonor book 1993:

"A consigliere is an ordinary man of honor who at some point is chosen for the role. He is a truly important figure. In some cases he is as important as his rep(...), since he is very close to him, influences him, informs him, and presents things to him in a certain light."

- Phil Leonetti, Mafia Prince book and testimony, 2012:

Leonetti describes Genovese consigliere Bobby Manna as the Philadelphia family's point of contact following the murder of boss Angelo Bruno. Manna was involved in every step of the political process and participated in the elimination of Bruno's killer(s) and the selection of two new Philadelphia bosses.

Leonetti also indicated that Nicky Scarfo served as the Philadelphia family's primary representative to NYC during his time as consigliere.

- Al D’Arco, Mob Boss book, 2015:

Jimmy Ida, then acting consigliere, referred to as the one “really running things for the crew.” In context, "crew" refers to the entire Genovese family. He describes Ida as the person in the Genovese family he most commonly dealt with to handle issues between the families.

- Michael DiLeonardo, Black Hand Forum Q&A, 2018:

Consiglieri is or was a very important position, liaison to other families, judge for beefs in the family, if he can not fix it then it gets to the boss, has that position been diminished, yes a great amount. Think this, that position does not get murdered. Boss and underboss does. I would have loved to take Sr's request to fill that spot. It was perfect for me and the family in that time period, being close to bosses of other families and close to the old timers.

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Consigliere... Sostituto?

- Melchiorre's statement that the consiglieri would serve as the "sostituto" (acting boss) to the boss in Sicily may have a parallel in the US during the same era. Giuseppe Traina is suspected of being the D'Aquila family's consigliere during the 1920s and served on multiple occasions as D'Aquila's "sostituto" in national matters. He traveled to Sicily in the mid-1920s as a likely "sostituto" or rep for D'Aquila related to ongoing Palermo warfare.

- In addition to the above, Traina headed a nationally-appointed peace committee during the Castellammarese War and served on this committee alongside bosses of other US families. Traina was not the boss of the Mineo family but was seen as a peer of bosses in national mafia politics. This would make sense if he was still consigliere. If he continued on as consigliere under Mineo as well as D'Aquila, it would match the member sources who said consigliere is elected and doesn't operate at the mercy of bosses, hence not changing rank when D'Aquila was killed.

- Stefano Magaddino, who was explaining election protocol to two high-ranking Bonanno members, makes it clear that the consigliere is a member-elected position independent of the boss's power who in fact can rival the boss's position. As a result, Magaddino had to "fight" to avoid having a consigliere. Magaddino candidly admits he didn't want to share his power with a consigliere, showing that Magaddino understood the consigliere to be more than simply a benign elderly advisor and potentially someone whose power was a direct threat to his.

- With Magaddino's reluctance to allow a consigliere, his comments about Carlo Gambino become more interesting. He says straight up that the Commission pushed Carlo Gambino as acting boss because he was already the consigliere and Magaddino says it was specifically Gambino's role as consigliere that made him the best candidate for boss. Magaddino has high regard for the consigliere position, yet doesn't want one in his family because of the power it represents.

- Former Bonanno underboss Sal Vitale said the consigliere has to be the one who formally nominates a candidate for boss. He gave the example of consigliere Anthony Spero nominating Joe Massino. This might be because the consigliere is described as a representative of the membership and the membership in theory elected the boss, so he represents them in naming the candidate. As we know from Joe Colombo, John Gotti, and Joe Massino, boss elections can be fixed behind the scenes, suggesting the same can be true for consigliere elections. With those three boss elections, the family went through the motions of voting but the outcome was predetermined by behind-the-scenes "campaigning", which Scarpa stated was against mafia rules. It does not appear these elections are always fixed, though.

- Nick Gentile bounced between the positions of boss and consigliere of different US mafia families he joined. He also served as "sostituto" to the Sciacchitani faction under Mangano. It appears the qualifications for boss, "sostituto", and consigliere were fairly similar in the mafia during this period given how Gentile was able to fluidly transition between them.

- Consigliere Joe N. Gallo served as interim acting boss (akin to "sostituto") following the murder of Paul Castellano, as consigliere Carlo Gambino did after Anastasia's murder. While it's been heavily overshadowed by all of the drama about Castellano and Dellacroce, contemporary FBI reports from CIs after Carlo Gambino's death show that Gallo was a serious candidate for boss along with Castellano and Dellacroce. There was a group in the family that apparently supported Gallo, not sure who this included.

- Gallo was also informed of the plot to kill Castellano and did not support it, but was willing to go along with it. Gallo was close to Castellano, regularly visiting Castellano's home, but Gallo's indifferent awareness of the Castellano plot is evidence that Gallo was not simply a lackey operating at Castellano's mercy but an independent power unattached to Castellano. He also continued on as consigliere immediately following Castellano's murder, just as he had done following Carlo Gambino's death, again showing that the consigliere does not necessarily serve at the mercy of a given boss.

- In recent years, Petey Red DiChiara was said to be the consigliere and acting boss for Barney Bellomo. Again, a consigliere in a "sostituto" role. We've seen it when a boss goes to prison, but this was interesting because it was a consigliere serving as acting boss while the official boss was still on the street.

Philadelphia's Other Boss

- Bruno referring to Rugnetta as a "rappresentante" is telling. I've never heard rappresentante used in the mafia as anything except boss of a family. Bruno uses it for himself and bosses around the US and Sicily, with his consigliere Rugnetta seemingly being the only non-boss he calls a rappresentante. That Angelo Bruno would use it to refer to his consigliere's leadership over the Calabrians is evidence of Rugnetta's power. As an example of this power in practice, Rugnetta's ability to veto and amend a Commission-sanctioned induction ceremony authorized by the family boss shows the level of power this position held in Philadelphia.

- In late 1977, powerful Philadelphia members Phil Testa, Frank Narducci, Nicky Scarfo, and Harry Riccobene were recorded discussing the death of consigliere Joe Rugnetta and the election for his replacement. These four men were upset as they felt, despite their stature in the organization, they were not being included in the process, but they did suggest the election would be decided by multiple members, not only boss Bruno. During this conversation, someone asked Riccobene (made 1927) if he ever remembered a previous consigliere election with more than one candidate and he says no; we can infer from the cynical tone of the conversation and this statement that they believe the election process will be fixed.

- It should be noted that despite the tone of the above discussion, Rugnetta's replacement was not an Angelo Bruno loyalist but in fact a would-be rival of Bruno. Tony Caponigro was likely elected in part because he was Calabrian, like Rugnetta. Earlier sources stated the Philadelphia family required that Calabrians be represented in the administration and given that both Bruno and underboss Testa were Sicilian, Caponigro assumed Rugnetta's consigliere title and role as defacto "rappresentante" of whatever remained of the Calabrian faction.

- As consigliere, Caponigro would orchestrate the murder of boss Bruno, showing that the consigliere continued to be a position that rivaled the boss. This was true, albeit less violently, under Caponigro's predecessor Rugnetta. FBI reports from the 1960s show that Caponigro long had a desire to kill Angelo Bruno, but it was a relatively short time after his elevation to consigliere that he followed through on a plot.

- Whether or not the election was fixed, it's clear Caponigro was chosen not because he was a subservient advisor figure to the boss, but because he was a factional power in his own right. Caponigro, a soldier prior to his election to consigliere, was a prominent Calabrian and leader of the family's North Jersey crew who maintained daily contact with high-ranking New York and New Jersey mafia leaders.

- The Testa regime would include a Sicilian underboss and Scarfo as consigliere, a Calabrian. It's not clear if this was an attempt to continue the family's tradition of a Calabrian consigliere or if it was coincidence. Available info suggests Scarfo was simply appointed consigliere after turning down the boss position himself. No idea if they staged an election with Nicky as the single candidate (ala Riccobene's earlier comment).

- While Philadelphia's consigliere was akin to a faction boss from at least the late 1950s to 1981, under Nicky Scarfo it became a seemingly minor role held by his relatives the Piccolos. By the mid-1980s the entire administration was Scarfo relatives of Calabrian heritage, showing that the family no longer paid lip service to its earlier political factionalism. It should be noted that his cousin Tony Piccolo, who acted as consigliere, became the family acting boss following Scarfo's incarceration and Piccolo played an active role in the organization as consigliere until his own incarceration.

Range of Power

- Jimmy Fratianno was told by John Roselli that Tony Accardo "acted as consigliere" while Joe Aiuppa was boss, but in fact Accardo was "back in power". A decade prior to Fratianno's cooperation, FBI reports show they suspected Accardo of holding the consigliere position in tandem with Paul Ricca and the FBI Dead List has him as consigliere. While this is a controversial topic in Chicago discussions, these sources can't be left out of this discussion. Whether Accardo was officially the consigliere to his mafia peers and functionally the top boss in every other regard, I have no idea, but Accardo's power would not in my opinion be inconsistent with some of the descriptions and examples of powerful consiglieri.

- Fratianno didn't question Roselli and say, "How could the consigliere also be the top guy in power?" likely because the potential power of a consigliere was known to a long-time mafia leader like Fratianno. Agree or disagree (or like me, take it at face value), this was Fratianno's perception of Accardo / Chicago. Fratianno was a member of the same family as informant Piscopo who was one of John Roselli's closest friends. Piscopo told the FBI that the consigliere could range in power from a major to minor figure and some important consiglieri participated in the Commission and attended Apalachin. Fratianno was in a similar position to Piscopo, being an LA member close to Roselli, so they would have a similar understanding of the mafia. For whatever reason, Fratianno did not find it irreconcilable that Accardo "acted as consigliere" but was the top power in Chicago.

- With Piscopo's comment about some consiglieri being insignificant, it's worth thinking about some who fit this bill during Piscopo's time. While his role is largely a mystery, consigliere Alessandro Pandolfo appears to have been a relatively minor figure in the Genovese family, mainly serving as support for faction leaders Vito Genovese and Tony Strollo. Valachi treated him like a minor footnote and they operated in the same crew. There are likely many early consiglieri in different US families who were never identified because they were background figures with little influence.

- Various US families appear to have had elderly / inactive consiglieri by the 1960s and later. Most of these organizations, however, were on the decline so the same can be said for most ranks in those families. It's difficult to evaluate how these families utilized the consigliere role in their "prime".

- Philadelphia figure Dominic Oliveto went from consigliere, to underboss, and finally acting boss. He is an early example of someone using consigliere as a "stepping stone". In the Gambino family, Joe Biondo also served as consigliere and later underboss, but these events were separated by many years and he had not been a part of the administration when he became underboss, so he didn't have a direct climb.

- Later examples, like Anthony Casso and Sammy Gravano, show us that the consigliere position was at the boss's mercy in those families by the 1980s and 1990s. It was something of a stepping stone, too, as up and coming figures like Casso and Gravano climbed the ranks.

Factionalism

- Note: when I say "faction", I mean subgroups in a family who have a clear identity and/or independent political power base. They don't need to be warring or in conflict, but we see countless examples. In the early mafia, these factions were more defined by the heritage of certain members. Joe Rugnetta was the consigliere and also the representative of the Calabrian faction. Even in mainly Sicilian families, though, you had separate factions divided by Sicilian hometown.

- Joe Bonanno's first two consiglieri were not Castellammarese, but from Partinico area (Borgetto) and Belmonte Mezzagno. As Scarpa and DiLeonardo said, consiglieri are rarely murdered yet both of Bonanno's first two consiglieri were killed (possibly after stepping down/being removed from position?). Given the heavy Castellammarese dominance in the family by this time, the selection of two non-Castellammarese consiglieri suggests they were representatives of other factions and, like in Philadelphia, it was politically important to give those factions representation on the administration. This may have also factored into their murders and eventual replacement by a Castellammarese. Their replacement, John Tartamella, is alleged to have had a decina directly with him, again showing the versatility of the position as more than a semi-active advisor.

- Joe Profaci's consigliere Joe Buffa was part of the family's Carini faction (more info: viewtopic.php?p=170787) which had deep roots in the organization and though there was a close relationship and some intermarriage with the Profaci Villabatesi clan, they were nonetheless a distinct group unto themselves. I don't believe it's a coincidence that we often see the consigliere come from a faction distinct from the boss, while it's more common to see an underboss from the boss's own crew or faction.

- In the Merlino era, the consigliere spot seems to be held mainly by loyalists to the Merlino leadership. In Buffalo, the last known consigliere is Donald Panepinto, who is the in-law of boss Joe Todaro Jr. These smaller families who are still hanging on might rely entirely on people close to the boss to help keep the family alive. They aren't as politically diverse as they used to be and to some degree aren't large/active enough to have multiple competing factions.

- In New York, the Bonanno, Gambino, and Luccheses have clearly defined factions who still gain/lose power. Politics and factionalism still play a role in New York mafia life and we saw during the Cammarano/Mancuso conflict that the consigliere played a significant role in the dispute.

- While consigliere can be representative of a certain faction, their role is also to help smooth out factionalism within the family. As John Cappello said, they're a peacemaker. Or as Stefano Magaddino said about Carlo Gambino, they pushed him to be acting boss because he was the consigliere and the family was on the verge of splitting in two.

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Didn't know how to organize this, so the info and notes are all over the place. There are hundreds of other examples, situations, and scenarios we could talk about, so please feel free to add anything and everything that fits. I've been wanting to put together this thread for a while as a central info dump / discussion about the position of consigliere after we had the "consiglio" thread (viewtopic.php?f=29&t=6598).

Though it's varied, there is a central theme in most of this info that makes it clear the idea of a defacto consigliere is a misnomer. Consigliere is a position that deals exclusively with the mafia's internal rules, protocol, and membership. It can vary from an elderly semi-active mediator to an "acting boss" of an entire faction, even acting boss for the official boss in both old Sicily and modern families like the Genovese. In some cases, the consigliere may have been equal or more powerful than the boss himself, as evidenced by Magaddino's fears and refusal to allow one in his family.

The power of consiglieri ranges from 1 to 100 and role varies. What remains clear is it's a position dedicated entirely to the organization. The position was designed to be loyal to the full membership, not simply the boss, and we have examples where the consigliere shows no loyalty to the boss. Their role doesn't pertain directly to crime either. They might be active in crime themselves and some of the disputes they arbitrate could involve crime, but the consigliere's duties themselves don't involve the operation side of crime and rackets.

One product of Americanization might be the consigliere position shifting from something members universally understood as a unique power into a defacto "number three" role. We have examples of later members even calling the consigliere "number three". The traditional consigliere is best illustrated by the hierarchy charts that show it floating off to the side of the boss and underboss rather than directly below them in a vertical line. It could be more accurate in today's mafia to show it the latter way, I don't know. Like Michael DiLeonardo told us, the position has greatly diminished.

[Villain]

Range of Power

- Jimmy Fratianno was told by John Roselli that Tony Accardo "acted as consigliere" while Joe Aiuppa was boss, but in fact Accardo was "back in power". A decade prior to Fratianno's cooperation, FBI reports show they suspected Accardo of holding the consigliere position in tandem with Paul Ricca and the FBI Dead List has him as consigliere. While this is a controversial topic in Chicago discussions, these sources can't be left out of this discussion. Whether Accardo was officially the consigliere to his mafia peers and functionally the top boss in every other regard, I have no idea, but Accardo's power would not in my opinion be inconsistent with some of the descriptions and examples of powerful consiglieri.

- Fratianno didn't question Roselli and say, "How could the consigliere also be the top guy in power?" likely because the potential power of a consigliere was known to a long-time mafia leader like Fratianno. Agree or disagree (or like me, take it at face value), this was Fratianno's perception of Accardo / Chicago. Fratianno was a member of the same family as informant Piscopo who was one of John Roselli's closest friends. Piscopo told the FBI that the consigliere could range in power from a major to minor figure and some important consiglieri participated in the Commission and attended Apalachin. Fratianno was in a similar position to Piscopo, being an LA member close to Roselli, so they would have a similar understanding of the mafia. For whatever reason, Fratianno did not find it irreconcilable that Accardo "acted as consigliere" but was the top power in Chicago.

Accardo and Ricca never knew Fratianno and by 1970 Roselli lost his influence in the organization so their opinion must be taken with few grains of salt. Also what about Rosellis comment to Fratianno to forget guys like Joe Battaers (Accardo), Giancana and Nitti because Ricca was the top guy, something which doesnt correspond with Ricca and Accardo previously sharing the "consiglere position". When Ricca died, Accardo took his position and thats why he "was back in power" because he had the last word on all important decisions. There was no "powerful consiglieri" but instead there was "The Man" or as we call it around here, a top boss. According to several members and associates, Alex held the "consigliere" position or something similar to it. Bot Alex and Aiuppa first had to clear it with Accardo before doing something

Good job on the rest of the info and thanks.

[CabriniGreen]

Consigliere Joe N. Gallo served as interim acting boss (akin to "sostituto") following the murder of Paul Castellano, as consigliere Carlo Gambino did after Anastasia's murder. While it's been heavily overshadowed by all of the drama about Castellano and Dellacroce, contemporary FBI reports from CIs after Carlo Gambino's death show that Gallo was a serious candidate for boss along with Castellano and Dellacroce. There was a group in the family that apparently supported Gallo, not sure who this included.

- Gallo was also informed of the plot to kill Castellano and did not support it, but was willing to go along with it. Gallo was close to Castellano, regularly visiting Castellano's home, but Gallo's indifferent awareness of the Castellano plot is evidence that Gallo was not simply a lackey operating at Castellano's mercy but an independent power unattached to Castellano. He also continued on as consigliere immediately following Castellano's murder, just as he had done following Carlo Gambino's death, again showing that the consigliere does not necessarily serve at the mercy of a given boss.

What did you think of Gottis convo with Gallo about consigliere elections? When he told Gallo he could just break all the Capos, name new Capos, have them vote him out, and then ," You ain't no consigliere no more".

Was LoCasio voted in?

[B.]

- For whatever reason, Fratianno believed Accardo was in a consigliere role at that time. He may have misremembered what Roselli told him, as we only have his memory, but I don't see incentive for Fratianno or Roselli to deliberately lie about Accardo "acting as consigliere" after coming back into power. If one of them got it wrong, it's worth asking what led them to believe Accardo was in that role as I don't think it's purposely dishonest even if it's not accurate.

- Fratianno doesn't clarify what "acts as consigliere" meant to him or if he understood or even cared exactly what Roselli meant, but as a long-time member Fratianno knows consigliere refers to a specific rank. The glossary of his book labels Accardo the consigliere as well, but we don't know if Fratianno directly approved the ranks used in the glossary or if the author put it together on his own from the contents of the book or other sources.

- As for the FBI report, I've got no idea what led them to label Accardo and Ricca co-consiglieri. They make other mistakes on those hierarchy charts, like naming a Buffalo consigliere even though Magaddino is on tape saying he never had one. Most of the info on those charts is accurate based on what they were told by CIs but then you have examples like Chicago and Buffalo where it's not clear what sources they were using. Obviously the FBI wanted to compile accurate charts.

- The FBI Dead List has errors, though it would be good to know why they include Accardo as consigliere. Is it from the 1969 hierarchy chart? From Fratianno? Another source?

All I know, is FBI charts and member sources have to be part of the conversation even if they deserve to be challenged.

[Villain]

During the late 60s most of the fbi teams had conflicting info on who was the Outfits boss and so they said that Ricca and Accardo jointly controlled the organization, something which already happened before and after that.

But later it came out that Cerone was in fact the boss from 1967 until his imprisonment in 1970. One good example regarding Cerone being expendable under Ricca and Accardo was during Cerones trial when Riccas testimony landed him in jail, because if Ricca didnt testify he was going to be the one in jail.

So when Ricca and Accardo brought Aiuppa on the scene, they placed Alex next to him until 1973 when Cerone got out. In 75 Cerone was placed as Aiuppas underboss but on the feds' charts, they were placed on the same level besides the different titles, with Accardo above them and Alex right beneath them but above the capos

[B.]

What did you think of Gottis convo with Gallo about consigliere elections? When he told Gallo he could just break all the Capos, name new Capos, have them vote him out, and then ," You ain't no consigliere no more".

Was that on tape? I remember hearing about it but can't remember where it came from.

It's a good indication the consigliere elections could be fixed. I wouldn't take the threat too literally, though. Note he says he'd have to replace the captains in order to do it which he's obviously not going to do en masse.

I wonder if they go through the motions of staging an election if a boss appoints someone consigliere in modern times. Would be interesting if any of the families still hold elections for boss and consigliere.

[CabriniGreen]

What did you think of Gottis convo with Gallo about consigliere elections? When he told Gallo he could just break all the Capos, name new Capos, have them vote him out, and then ," You ain't no consigliere no more".

Was that on tape? I remember hearing about it but can't remember where it came from.

It's a good indication the consigliere elections could be fixed. I wouldn't take the threat too literally, though. Note he says he'd have to replace the captains in order to do it which he's obviously not going to do en masse.

I wonder if they go through the motions of staging an election if a boss appoints someone consigliere in modern times. Would be interesting if any of the families still hold elections for boss and consigliere.

Gotti was nuts, I think he actually said he would break the Capos, vote out the Consigliere, then reinstate the original Capos....

[cavita]

B.

Awesome work as usual.. when I return home I will look through my notes and contribute a few things.

[Pogo The Clown]

- While Philadelphia's consigliere was akin to a faction boss from at least the late 1950s to 1981, under Nicky Scarfo it became a seemingly minor role held by his relatives the Piccolos. By the mid-1980s the entire administration was Scarfo relatives of Calabrian heritage, showing that the family no longer paid lip service to its earlier political factionalism. It should be noted that his cousin Tony Piccolo, who acted as consigliere, became the family acting boss following Scarfo's incarceration and Piccolo played an active role in the organization as consigliere until his own incarceration.

It seems that post Monte the position became mostly ceremonial with little real power or involvement. Leonetti barely mentions either Nick or Tony Buck attending meetings or taking part in any major decisions. Caramndi doesn't mention either of them in his book. We know neither of them got a cut of the street tax (the elbow) even though most of the Capos did. And with all the informants neither of them were ever indicted for the Scsrfo era murders, drugs and extortions even when just about every active member in the area was.


Tony Piccolo did become Acting Boss but he wasn't Scarfo's first choice. He only got it because guys like Ligambi and Pontani were indicted first and then Martirano turned it down. Piccolo did gain some influence during the early part of Stanfa's reign but that was mostly due to their being no one left. By the the end of it he seems to have had very little involvement and influence. A telling point was in 1993 someone introduced Sergio Battaglia to him as a made member. That shows that even though it was small group and he was the Consigliere he did not take part in the induction ceremony. And if I remember right he didn't even know Stanfa was going to do it before it happened.


Turchi seems to have had very little influence during his short reign. He didn't make any money and he is barely mentioned during that era. In terms of influence he was below several other members.


Mazzone and Borgesi did have power but they had that power before. They were already two of the top guys running things before they got the job and when they got it their involvement in the street level activity didn't change. It doesn't seem that anything changed for them when they got it or that hThe really gained anything from being promoted to Consigliere.


We don't know much about Curro's short reign but he is barely mentioned during the coverage of that era. And again from what has come out it seems he was below several other members in terms of influence despite his rank.


Pogo

[sdeitche]

Wanted to throw out another tidbit that I didn't include in the other thread, regarding Tampa. You can see by the 1963 McClellan chart, that they did have two "elder" position, occupied by Joe Mistretta and Salvatore Scagione, two old-time Sicilians (though Mistretta was born in Argentina).

There are mentions that Scaglione may have filled in as acting boss in Tampa while Santo Jr was in Havana most of the time (mid-late 1950s).

Also of note, Mistretta and Scaglione were two of the chief suspects in the 1955 murder of Charlie Wall. (The third was Joe Bedami).

One other person I think may have been sort of a consilgieri/elder position in Tampa was Alphonse Diecidue, father of Frank, Tom, and Tony. Diecidue, who died in 1947, was seen as a rival to Trafficante Sr., but not so sure that's correct. (For started Alphonso was the godfather of Frank Trafficante, Sato Jr's brother. Also, Frnka Diecude was best man for Santo Jr's wedding, and some others...)

[B.]

Good post, Pogo.

- We see the consigliere position change in both Philadelphia and certain NYC families around the same time (mid- and late- 1980s). In Philly it become little more than an honorary title, while in New York it became a stepping stone and a way to stuff the administration with the boss's allies. That doesn't seem to have happened as much, if at all, earlier on.

- The Bonannos and Genovese families seem to be exceptions. Anthony Spero and Bobby Manna / Jimmy Ida were powers in their own right and not simply climbing the ranks or stuffing the admin. Manna was a Gigante ally, but appears to have become consigliere before Gigante became boss and he was directly involved in high-level politics throughout the 1980s.

- An example I forgot to include in the original post is Mike Miranda. There used to be a perception that he was put in as Vito Genovese's man, but FBI reports show us he was head of his own faction that challenged Genovese's power after the latter's incarceration. While it never boiled over, high-ranking Genovese members were recorded discussing this.

- Interesting how Bellomo's underboss Muscarella is from Bellomo's own crew, while his consigliere / acting boss was from another crew. Could be a coincidence, but it fits the traditional idea of the underboss operating at the boss's mercy while the consigliere comes from a separate power base.

--

- Nick Gentile describes the mafia as having the "farce of democracy" and that the bosses were tyrants. However, he says that while Milano wanted him to be his "personal consigliere", the Cleveland family nominated Gentile for the consigliere position before Milano could directly influence it. Milano was apparently surprised and Gentile says Milano was still understanding the politics.

- Gentile also makes himself out to be a power in his own right as consigliere, which is at odds with his idea that everyone operates at the tyrannical boss's mercy. Gentile's story makes it clear that some of the "democratic" processes in the mafia do add counterbalance to the boss's power, as evidenced by the role of the Consiglio Supremo, the individual family consiglio, and his own ability to challenge death sentences imposed by bosses.

- We can't dismiss what Gentile said about the "farce of democracy", though. I think we should take his info as a sign that the mafia has always been prone to underhanded political manipulation within their own ranks. Gentile's own story and countless other evidence shows that this was not always the case, though.

--

- One more comment, re: Accardo. Fratianno's comments are important not because they are proof that Accardo did or didn't hold a certain title, but because Fratianno didn't seem to find it implausible that someone could "act as consigliere" and also have the power and influence of an Accardo.

- When I first started reading about the mob online, you'd see sites that said the NJ crew of the Lucchese family had its own hierarchy where Marty Taccetta was the consigliere. Similar to what we've seen in the last fifteen years about Paolo Renda in the Montreal crew being the consigliere. The reality is these men were soldiers.

- I'm trying to think of examples where a made member casually referred to someone as a consigliere who didn't actually hold the title consigliere. We have many examples of outsiders calling so-and-so a consigliere because he's in some kind of advisory role, but when it comes to the members themselves I can't think offhand of the word being used for someone who didn't hold the title or actually operate in that capacity. I'm sure it's happened, I just can't think of it.

[B.]

Wanted to throw out another tidbit that I didn't include in the other thread, regarding Tampa. You can see by the 1963 McClellan chart, that they did have two "elder" position, occupied by Joe Mistretta and Salvatore Scagione, two old-time Sicilians (though Mistretta was born in Argentina).

There are mentions that Scaglione may have filled in as acting boss in Tampa while Santo Jr was in Havana most of the time (mid-late 1950s).

Also of note, Mistretta and Scaglione were two of the chief suspects in the 1955 murder of Charlie Wall. (The third was Joe Bedami).

One other person I think may have been sort of a consilgieri/elder position in Tampa was Alphonse Diecidue, father of Frank, Tom, and Tony. Diecidue, who died in 1947, was seen as a rival to Trafficante Sr., but not so sure that's correct. (For started Alphonso was the godfather of Frank Trafficante, Sato Jr's brother. Also, Frnka Diecude was best man for Santo Jr's wedding, and some others...)

Thanks for the details.

Like we talked about before I think those "elder" positions were the consiglio we see in many other families. Tampa was cut from the same exact mold as the other US families who maintained a consiglio. I'd be curious if Tampa also had an official consigliere in the admin.

--

- Magaddino makes it clear that a family could go without an official consigliere even in the early days. Would be interesting to know of other families who, in their prime, did not have someone in an official consigliere position.

- San Jose had a consiglio and multiple members have been referred to as consiglieri (same for Detroit), but it's not clear if one of them held the role of official consigliere or if they were simply "consiglieri" in the sense that they were on the consiglio.

- ScottB believes Detroit's John Priziola was the official consigliere which would make him another example of a consigliere who is the defacto leader of a faction within the family. Priziola headed a faction distinct from the Terrasini group under Zerilli. Priziola, like we see in other families, may have been both the official consigliere and a member of the consiglio.

It is confusing, but these subtle distinctions existed in the organization and appear to have been lost through Americanization and the decline of the national network.

[Pogo The Clown]

Speaking of the position changing in Philly I'm reminded of what one of the investigators said in 2001 on one of those Philly documentaries.


"They have all the titles. This guy is the Boss, this guy in the UnderBoss and this guy is the Consigliere but when it comes down to it these are meaningless titles because there is nothing organized about them."


Looking at the post Scarfo era this is true. Despite the titles most of the guys in the administration still engaged in the gritty street level crimes with the lower members and non-members. So while they used the traditional titles none of them really functioned in the traditional role that we associate with those titles of the way their predecessors did in the past.


Pogo

[B.]

Another good point.

That's kind of what I was getting at about them playing musical chairs in the last 20 years. Mazzone was consigliere, then allegedly underboss in the early 2000s, then it comes out definitely he's consigliere circa 2010, now he's underboss. Ligambi was underboss, acting boss, and now consigliere. Borgesi's name has been bounced around the administration for the last twenty years, consigliere and acting boss.

Sure seems like the admin spots are just a way to stuff the admin with their loyalists, but regardless of their duties those positions still represent power in Philly. I'd be curious if a modern member flipped what they might say about the specific duties of any given Philly leader. Even though the leadership positions all seem to run together, they do hold fast to the structure.

[MightyDR]

What did you think of Gottis convo with Gallo about consigliere elections? When he told Gallo he could just break all the Capos, name new Capos, have them vote him out, and then ," You ain't no consigliere no more".

Was that on tape? I remember hearing about it but can't remember where it came from.

It's a good indication the consigliere elections could be fixed. I wouldn't take the threat too literally, though. Note he says he'd have to replace the captains in order to do it which he's obviously not going to do en masse.

I wonder if they go through the motions of staging an election if a boss appoints someone consigliere in modern times. Would be interesting if any of the families still hold elections for boss and consigliere.

Gotti was nuts, I think he actually said he would break the Capos, vote out the Consigliere, then reinstate the original Capos....

Here is an article with the actual quotes:
https://www.nytimes.com/1987/12/03/nyre ... Position=1

Gotti says that he is totally within his rights as boss to break captains. Gallo agrees with him and says the only position he can't break is consigliere. Gotti tells Gallo not to flatter himself and that he could "break them 23 captains" and then "put 10 captains there that I promote tomorrow". Then, ''You ain't no consiglieri.''

While this does seem like a radical thing to do, keep in mind Gotti just killed his boss and got away with it. Gotti is reminding Gallo that whatever the rules are, he has enough power in the family at the moment to replace him.