Mob FilesPublic-domain archive of American organized crime
Printed writ of commitment from the Northern District of Illinois, 16 November 1920, committing William Brown to the Leavenworth penitentiary for 'Using the Mails in Scheme to Defraud (Black Hand)'.
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The United States vs. William Brown: 'Black Hand' mail case, Chicago, 1920 (case file)

National Archives case file from the federal court at Chicago: the catalog note says William Brown was accused of mailing letters threatening to kill a woman unless she paid $500, and was found guilty and sentenced to five years at Leavenworth. The court's commitment form labels the offence '(Black Hand)'.

Date
1920-11
Kind
case-file
Source
National Archives Catalog
Retrieved
2026-10-12
NAID
214445316
Rights
A record of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, held by the National Archives at Chicago in Record Group 21. A United States government work, public domain in the United States under 17 U.S.C. § 105. The National Archives catalog lists access and use as unrestricted.

The National Archives catalogs this file as “The United States vs. William Brown,” a criminal case file of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, with 14 digital pages. The catalog note says Brown was accused of mailing threatening letters to Bertha Brunder “as part of the Black Hand crime organization,” threatening to kill her if she did not pay $500, and was charged under the postal laws with using the mails in a scheme to defraud, found guilty, and sentenced to five years at Leavenworth.

The first page of the file is the writ of commitment of 16 November 1920, filed separately (commitment) and shown here. On it the clerk typed the offence as “violating Section 215 Criminal Code, Postal Law. Using the Mails in Scheme to Defraud (Black Hand).”

The catalog’s phrase about a “Black Hand crime organization” is the archivist’s summary; the court form uses “Black Hand” as a label for the kind of offence. Nothing in the pages opened ties Brown to any other defendant filed here.

itemCommitment of William Brown to Leavenworth, 16 November 1920: 'Using the Mails in Scheme to Defraud (Black Hand)'Printed writ of commitment witnessed by Judge Kenesaw M. Landis and signed by the clerk: William Brown, found guilty on an indictment for 'Using the Mails in Scheme to Defraud (Black Hand)', was sentenced on 16 November 1920 to five years at Leavenworth.itemU.S. vs. Gianni Alongi: threatening-letter case, Chicago, 1911 (case file)National Archives case file from the federal court at Chicago: the catalog note says Gianni Alongi was accused in February 1911 of mailing three letters demanding $500 under threat of murder, in which he claimed to be a member of the Black Hand, and was found guilty and sentenced to five years and a $1,000 fine.itemThe United States vs. Pietro Mecca and Paul Mennite: threatening-letter case, Chicago, 1915 (case file)National Archives case file from the federal court at Chicago: the catalog note says Mecca and Mennite were accused of mailing letters threatening to kill a man and his family and to bomb his home unless he paid $300; both were sentenced to five years at Leavenworth.