United States v. Pendergast; United States v. O'Malley, 28 F. Supp. 601 (W.D. Mo. 1939)

The memorandum was written “for publication in the Federal Supplement.” It describes Pendergast as “a private citizen living in Kansas City, Missouri, who had exercised a dominating influence in city, county and state politics for a quarter of a century,” and his office: “‘1908 Main Street’ was synonymous with power, it was the local Mecca of the faithful,” a small second-floor room in a two-story building. It recounts the 1930 fire-insurance rate litigation and the payments that led to indictments of Pendergast and Robert Emmet O’Malley for attempted evasion of income taxes for 1935 and 1936, to which they pleaded guilty.

The sentence on Monday, 22 May 1939: one year and three months in a federal penitentiary on Count I; on Count II a $10,000 fine and three years suspended with five years’ probation beginning on release. The opinion says “Pendergast was never even charged with a crime” before this indictment and that his guilt of other offenses was only “whispered.” Dockets 14567 (Pendergast) and 14459 (O’Malley) are printed in the caption. A newspaper report of the sentence gives the probation as three years; the opinion says five, and the opinion is followed.