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Harry Aleman

Harry Aleman
Harry Aleman.gif
Mugshot of Harry Aleman
Born (1939-01-19)January 19, 1939
Chicago, Illinois
Died May 15, 2010(2010-05-15) (aged 71)
Galesburg, Illinois
Cause of death Lung cancer
Other names "The Hook"

Harry "The Hook" Aleman (January 19, 1939 – May 15, 2010) was a Chicago mobster who was one of the most feared enforcers for the Chicago Outfit during the 1970s. Aleman got the nickname "Hook" from his boxing career in high school. He is also famous for being the only person in the United States ever to be acquitted of murder, then legally tried and convicted for murder when the initial trial was found to be corrupt. This is not considered a case of double jeopardy as the initial trial was found to be corrupt; the Chicago judge was recruited specifically to acquit Aleman during a bench trial.

Born in the Taylor Street area of Chicago, Aleman was the first of three sons of Louis Aleman and Mary Virginia Baratta. The legendary Taylor Street was the port-of-call for Chicago's Italian Americans. Aleman was a nephew of future Chicago Outfit acting mob boss Joseph Ferriola and uncle to Joseph Aleman.

Aleman's mother was Italian, his father a native of Durango, Durango Mexico who was involved in narcotics trafficking. In a 1997 interview, Aleman said that his father beat him every day. The only relief Aleman got was from ages seven to eleven, when Louis was in prison. (The two weeks of each summer, which Harry spent at the Bowen Country Club, must have, by definition, also provided a reprieve of sorts.)

In 1956, Aleman graduated from Crane Technical High School and enrolled in the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts to study commercial art. In 1958, he graduated with a two-year degree in that field. Aleman went to work selling race track program sheets and produce from the South Water Street Market.

In 1964, Aleman married Ruth Felper Mustari, a widow with four children, who died in 2000 at age 68. Due to an accident as a teenager, Aleman wasn't able to produce children of his own. However, according to Ruth and his stepchildren, he was a loving and kind husband and father.


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