James V. La Duca
Of Lewiston, N.Y. Called before the McClellan Committee in 1958, he declined on Fifth Amendment grounds to say whether he attended the Apalachin meeting. The committee's staff list and a 1963 Buffalo police witness describe his ties by marriage to the Magaddino family.
- Aliases
- James Vincent La Duca, James LaDuca
- Rights
- Biography on this page is limited to what the cited federal records state.
On the record
- 1958 — Sworn before the McClellan Committee with Buffalo counsel, he gave his residence as Lewiston, N.Y., and declined "on the grounds it may tend to incriminate me" to state his occupation or to say whether he attended the meeting at Apalachin. Robert F. Kennedy read the staff's information that he had been a dispatcher for John C. Montana's Van Dyke Taxi Co., had worked for the Maggadino Funeral Home, and was secretary-treasurer of Local 66 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees; he declined each question (Part 32, pp. 12272-12274). Testimony; a refusal to answer is not evidence of the facts asked.
- 1958 — The staff list: "La Duca, James Vincent (Lewiston, N. Y.): At Apalachin meeting. Was secretary-treasurer of Local 66, Hotel, Restaurant Employees, Buffalo. Associate of Steve and Anthony Maggadino, Roy Carlisi, and John Montana." Steve Maggadino's entry says "Another daughter married to LaDuca." (Part 32, pp. 12197-12198). Committee staff memorandum, which the chairman said "is not evidence."
- 28 November 1960 — United States v. Bufalino, 285 F.2d 408 (2d Cir. 1960), lists James LaDuca among men taken to the Vestal barracks on whom "the record is not clear as to where they were apprehended," and among four defendants who were fugitives (n.1). Court opinion.
- 16 October 1963 — Buffalo police Lt. Michael Amico described Stefano Magaddino's "son-in-law, James LaDuca, who was in attendance at the Apalachin convention" (Senate hearings 1963, Part 2, p. 588). Police testimony.
This page is limited to federal records. No record opened here states a role for him in any organization. His family relationship to Stefano Magaddino is stated by the committee staff’s memorandum and by a police witness, not by a court. His wife is not named here.
Records
itemTestimony of James V. La Duca before the McClellan Committee, 1958 (Part 32)James V. La Duca of Lewiston, N.Y., declined on Fifth Amendment grounds to answer whether he attended the Apalachin meeting, while Robert F. Kennedy read the staff's information on his work for John C. Montana's taxi company, the Maggadino Funeral Home and Local 66 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees.
itemMcClellan Committee staff list: "Individuals at Apalachin and Names of Some of Their Contacts and Associates" (1958)An alphabetical staff memorandum printed in Part 32 (pp. 12194-12201) giving a residence and a summary of arrests, businesses and associations for each Apalachin attendee and some contacts. The chairman admitted it "for guidance and information only" and said "It is not evidence."
itemTestimony of Buffalo Police Lt. Michael Amico on Stefano Magaddino and John C. Montana, October 16, 1963The head of Buffalo's Criminal Intelligence Bureau introduced the "Magaddino Empire of Organized Crime" chart (Exhibit 65), read a statement calling Stefano Magaddino the "titular head" of syndicated crime in the Buffalo-Niagara Falls and Toronto areas, and said police had found no arrest of John C. Montana before Apalachin.itemUnited States v. Bufalino, 285 F.2d 408 (2d Cir. 1960)Second Circuit opinion reversing the convictions of Russell Bufalino and nineteen others for obstructing justice and perjury after the 14 November 1957 gathering at Apalachin, New York. The court says the government offered no evidence of the meeting's purpose.