James Licavoli

James T. "Blackie" Licavoli also known as "Jack White" (August 18, 1904 − November 23, 1985) was a Cleveland, Ohio mobster and one of the earliest organized crime figures to be convicted under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO Act).

James Licavoli was born Vicentio Licavoli in St. Louis, Missouri, the third of four children of Dominic and Girolama Licavoli. They emigrated to the United States from Italy and eventually settled in St. Louis along with other members of their family. In St. Louis, James Licavoli along with his cousins, Peter and Thomas also known as "Yonnie" were members of the Russo Gang.

On October 6, 1926, Licavoli was shot in the leg and arrested after a wild chase and shootout with St. Louis Police. Though he had fired on the police, Licavoli was charged merely with carrying a concealed weapon and even that charge was dropped. On August 9, 1927, on the outskirts of Chicago, Licavoli survived a "one-way ride" that claimed the lives of his friends, Anthony "Shorty" Russo and Vincent Spicuzza. Licavoli then went with his cousins to Detroit where, as part of the Detroit Mafia, they wrested control of the city's rackets from the self-destructing Purple Gang, previously dominant in Detroit. There, he was convicted of bootlegging and served a stint at Leavenworth. Upon his release, he joined his cousins in Toledo, where they had moved to avoid heat from the murder of a crusading Anti-Mafia radio broadcaster, Jerry Buckley.

The Licavolis and their cousin, Leo "Lips" Moceri, did not remain in Ohio for long. Five members of the gang including Yonnie were arrested for the murder of a popular Toledo bootlegger. Peter Licavoli returned to Detroit and regrouped - his force retaining the original Purple Gang title. James Licavoli went on the lam and hid in Pittsburgh where he stayed with up-and-coming mob boss, John Sebastian Larocca.

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