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Mueller and Weissmann involved in the two biggest scandals in FBI history Special Counsel Robert Mueller III and lead attorney in the Special Counsel’s Office Andrew Weissmann have been connected to one another throughout most of their careers, and both men moved quickly to the top tackling major crime syndicates and white-collar crime. Ironically, both men were also connected in two of the biggest corruption investigations in FBI history. But rarely are Weissmann and Mueller’s past cases discussed in the media. Their past is relevant because it gives a roadmap to the future — now that these two longtime colleagues...

Some things seem to capture the public perception of gangster James "Whitey" Bulger's life: a sterling silver "psycho killer" skull ring, a rat-shaped pencil holder, a stack of books about the mafia.

Adolph Hitler was always a sucker for animals. So perhaps it's no surprise that the notorious Nazi Party gangster stopped to get a puppy in Nuremburg while driving cross-country in Germany during his first run for public office. At least that's what he later claimed. Substitute James "Whitey" Bulger for Hitler and you get the first two paragraphs of a Boston Globe (Sept. 14) story about the vicious killer Whitey Bulger, who, like Hitler, also was a sucker for animals. He loved puppies too.

ON THE JEWISH calendar, Wednesday is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It marks the culmination of the Days of Awe, the solemn period of introspection that began 10 days ago on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Like many Jews, I have been thinking about the themes of this season — repentance and forgiveness, wrongdoing and reconciliation. I have also been thinking about Johnny Depp.More precisely, I've been thinking about some things Depp said at the Boston premiere of "Black Mass," the new film in which he plays the gangster James "Whitey" Bulger. Speaking to reporters before the screening...

From 1978-1994, Kevin Weeks served as a member of the Winter Hill Gang, and a close friend, confidant, and henchman to Whitey Bulger. And he says Johnny Depp’s film is bogus. “We really did kill those people,” says Kevin Weeks, the former mobster and right-hand man to notorious crime boss Whitey Bulger. “But the movie is a fantasy.” The film that has Weeks riled up is Black Mass. Directed by Scott Cooper, it stars Johnny Depp as Winter Hill Gang leader James “Whitey” Bulger, and depicts the menacing Irishman’s rise up the criminal ranks from low-level gangster to the most...

MIAMI — A Florida appeals court has overturned the murder conviction for a former FBI agent linked to mobster Whitey Bulger. The 3rd District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that former agent John Connolly was improperly convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for his role in the 1982 slaying of a gambling executive. A hit man testified that he killed World Jai-Alai President John Callahan after ex-agent Connolly tipped Bulger and others that the executive would implicate them in another death. In the court's new ruling, a panel of judges determined in a 2-1 vote that Connolly's second-degree...

Laurel Sweet: (Whitey) #Bulger receives two consecutive life sentences plus five years. (Judge) Casper orders. #Bulger pay $19,510,276 and 43 cents in restitution to the families. Howie Carr: life on counts one and 2, 240 months max 5-27 concurrent, stat max of 60 months on 48, five years on and after consecutively on guns, then life on machine gun. will not impose fine in light of restitution. $3100, one for each count . Restitution: $19,510,276.43.

The late Jennifer Martel didn’t need a restraining order Thursday night, she needed a gun. This is what happens when the population is disarmed. They can’t fight back. Kristina Hill and Benjamin Ray courageously risked their lives to save their defenseless neighbor, but what could they do with their bare hands against this monster? They needed a gun, too. The National Rifle Association has a host of slogans that drive moonbats crazy, probably because most of them are indisputably true. This is one of them: “When seconds count, police are minutes away.” Another one is, “I’d rather be judged by...

A verdict has been reached in the murder and racketeering trial of James “Whitey” Bulger, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced. The eight men and four women on the jury deliberated for more than 30 hours. The 32-count indictment before them accuses Bulger, 83, of the gangland shootings and strangulations of 19 men and women between 1973 and 1985, money laundering, extortion, drug distribution and illegal firearms possession. The former leader of the Winter Hill Gang faces a maximum sentence of life plus 30 years.

WBZ-TV coverage on now. Jim Armstrong of that station says Whitey has entered room... a hush falls

There is no connection, of course, between the prosecution of notorious gangster James "Whitey" Bulger and the recent spate of scandals and revelations roiling the Obama administration. Or is there? Law enforcement and criminal justice are essential functions of government. No civilized society could survive for long if it lacked tools to combat lawlessness or make dangerous villains answer for their crimes. And Bulger was certainly dangerous — "one of the most vicious, violent criminals ever to walk the streets of Boston," as Assistant US Attorney Fred Wyshak called him in summing up for the prosecution last week. But Bulger...

There is no connection, of course, between the prosecution of Whitey Bulger and the recent spate of scandals and revelations roiling the Obama administration. Or is there? * * * The corruption of the federal government was a key element in Bulger’s trial, as it was in so much of his sadistic career. Officials charged with defending the public from gangsters like Bulger used their considerable influence to defend the gangster instead. * * * The Bulger trial, the IRS scandal, and our surveillance state are the latest reminders that even the best government in the world depends on human...

Howie thread for the month starting with his Aug 2 column

Corrupt FBI let mobster Whitey Bulger keep killing—and it cost innocent lives. You'd hardly know it from the wall-to-wall coverage of the George Zimmerman case, but there's another trial going on that's at least as worthy of national attention. That's the 32-count federal racketeering indictment against James "Whitey" Bulger, a Boston mob kingpin linked to at least 19 murders, captured in 2011 after 16 years on the lam. Bulger, a former "Top Echelon Informant" for the FBI, is a monster, but he's hardly the only villain in a story where "gangster government" leaves the realm of metaphor. As Boston Globe...

Rakes, 59, of Quincy, had been attending Bulger's racketeering trial in Boston and, at one point, was expected to be called as a witness for the prosecution. Rake's body was found around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in the area of Mill Street in Lincoln, Mass., according to Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan

The body of a key witness in James 'Whitey’ Bulger's racketeering trial was found dead on the side of a road Wednesday by a jogger in Lincoln, Mass., which is just west of Boston. The body belonged to Stephen "Stippo" Rakes, 59, who was allegedly extorted by Bulger and considered one of the most determined alleged victims who waited a decade to testify, The Boston Globe reported. The Globe reported that Rakes has been a fixture for six weeks at Bulger's trial and was told recently that he would not get the chance to testify. The Middlesex County district attorney's...

Howie thread for the first half of July starting with his Tue 7/2/13 column. Remember he has trial updates etc on twitter @howiecarrshow

For most of the first half of my life, I lived in or near Boston. Usually, I am proud of my hometown, its history, its universities and its spirit. After the Boston Marathon bombings, Beantown united under the phrase "Boston Strong." I left in 1985. When I go back, I see how much the city has changed. The Boston I left had a wrong side, too -- a culture that looked away when organized crime terrorized young and old. Boston Wrong has been on parade this month during the long-awaited trial of James "Whitey" Bulger, 83, on 32 federal counts...

Howie thread for first half of June, 2013 (jury selection for Whitey Bulger trial to begin Thu I think). We'll start off with this special Saturday column: It’s not exactly the resume-enhancer I’d have picked for myself — “defense witness for Whitey Bulger.” But I can’t say I wasn’t expecting it either. And I’m not sure how serious Whitey’s lawyers are. Maybe they’re just trying to keep me and the Globe reporters out of the courtroom. There’s an old saying in the law: If you have the facts, pound the facts. If you have the law, pound the law. If...

Howie Carr thread for the second half of Feb. starting with today's Boston Herald column, "Whitey Trial Made for TV"