John Patrick Looney

John Patrick Looney (1865–1947) was a gangster in the Rock Island, Illinois area during the early 20th century. He began his career as a lawyer, achieved success, but soon became involved in illegal activity. At the height of his power he controlled much of the gambling, prostitution, illegal liquor and protection rackets in Rock Island. Through his newspaper Rock Island News, he was able to blackmail and intimidate his opponents. His family house is in the Highland Park Historic District in Rock Island, IL.

Looney's empire came to an end when he was eventually indicted for murder after a gang war in 1922. He went on the run but was captured two years later. In 1925 he was convicted of murder and numerous other crimes. He served only eight and a half years.

John Looney, son of Irish immigrants, was born in Ottawa, Illinois. He studied law and was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1889. He practiced with his partner Frank H. Kelly; he had his first real brush with the law in 1897 when he and Kelly were indicted for conspiracy to defraud the city by using inferior materials. The convictions were overturned on appeal.

Looney soon ventured into politics, and went on to hold a prominent position in the Democratic Party. He would eventually run for, but lose, election to the Illinois State Legislature.

Looney attributed his loss at the election to the Rock Island Argus, which wrote many negative opinion articles on him. In response, Looney founded the Rock Island News, which he used to blackmail prominent Rock Island citizens.

In 1905, Looney bought the Mirror Lounge, a closed club to use for his law office on the 1st floor and to publish his newspaper on the second floor. After purchasing the building, John brought his brothers William (Bill) and Jeremiah (Jerry) to Rock Island from Ottawa to help him run the paper. During the early 20th century, Looney published many articles that attacked the Rock Island Argus and threaten to expose the deep dark secrets some of Rock Island's most prominent residents. The residents attacked by Looney threats were blackmailed into paying "kill fees" to kill articles before they were published. However, by 1908, Looney was desperate for money to keep all of his operations afloat, so he was forced to sell Rock Island News to W.W. Wilmerton.

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