Connolly convicted of second-degree murder
(Alan Diaz/AP)
Connolly listened attentively to testimony earlier in the trial.
By Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff
MIAMI -- Retired FBI agent John J. Connolly Jr. was convicted today of second-degree murder for leaking information to long-time informants James "Whitey" Bulger and Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi that caused them to kill a potential witness against them 26 years ago.
The verdict, delivered by a Florida jury that deliberated for 13 hours following seven weeks of testimony, means that the 68-year-old Connolly could spend the rest of his life in prison.
It marks the complete fall from grace of the once-decorated agent who is already serving a 10-year prison term for his 2002 federal racketeering conviction for helping Bulger -- one of the FBI's 10 Most Wanted -- evade capture and protecting him from prosecution for years.
Connolly stared, expressionless, unblinking, as the verdict of the six-woman, six-man jury was announced just before 4 p.m.
Prosecutors said the conviction of second-degree murder with a firearm carried a sentence of between 30 years to life in prison. But the defense team said that they believed that Judge Stanford Blake had discretion to give Connolly a shorter sentence, because the murder occurred before a change in sentencing guidelines. Sentencing was set for Dec. 4.
Jurors declined to comment as they left the building.
Fred Wyshak, a federal prosecutor from Boston who assisted in the state prosecution, said, "Unless we catch Whitey Bulger, this ends what is really a sad chapter in the history of law enforcement in Boston."
He added that there was nothing happy about the case. "Hopefully, this will never happen again. That was the point of this investigation, making sure this never happens again.''
After jurors left the courtroom and the judge left the bench, Connolly huddled with his lawyers, held his sister Sally's hand and hugged his brother James, a retired DEA agent.
He declined to talk, saying he'd been advised not to by his lawyers.
"I think the jury reached a verdict of guilty because of all the uncharged bad acts that were introduced,'' said defense attorney Manuel L. Casabielle. "Obviously, some of the mud did stick.''
While convicting Connolly on one count, the jury found him not guilty of conspiracy to commit murder in the 1982 slaying in south Florida of John B. Callahan, a gregarious 45-year-old accountant who worked at some of Boston's largest accounting firms but had a fatal habit of socializing with gangsters.
Jurors apparently believed the testimony of the 74-year-old Flemmi, who is now serving a life sentence for 10 murders and testified that it was a tip from his handler, Connolly, that sealed Callahan's fate.
Facing his former handler from the witness stand, Flemmi testified that Connolly warned him and Bulger that the FBI planned to question Callahan and advised that he "wouldn't hold up'' and would likely implicate the gangsters in the 1981 slaying of a legitimate businessman, World Jai Alai president Roger Wheeler.
Hitman-turned-government witness John Martorano testified that at the urging of Bulger and Flemmi, he lured Callahan to Florida and shot him in the head. Callahan's bullet-riddled body was found in the trunk of his car at Miami International Airport on Aug. 2, 1982.
Though Connolly was only charged with Callahan's murder, prosecutors were allowed to present additional evidence dating back to the 1970s in an effort to prove that Connolly was corrupt.
Flemmi testified that Connolly, who grew up in the same South Boston housing project as Bulger, took $235,000 in payoffs from him and Bulger, and routinely leaked them information -- including tips that prompted them to kill Callahan, and two FBI informants, one in 1976 and one in 1982.
After Connolly took a $25,000 kickback in 1983 that he knew came from drug proceeds, he joked, "Hey, I'm one of the gang."
The defense called 20 witnesses, including US District Senior Judge Edward F. Harrington, who testified that Connolly had a reputation in the Boston FBI office for his ability to turn some of Boston's most dangerous criminals -- including Bulger and Flemmi -- into informants. He credited Connolly with using those informants to help the FBI decimate the New England Mafia in the 1980s.
The government called 21 witnesses during the trial. Jurors were given a stark view of Boston's underworld, FBI corruption, and murder.
The government's key witnesses were: Flemmi, Martorano, who is free after serving just 12 years for 20 murders; gangster-turned-author Kevin Weeks, who served five years for assisting Bulger in five murders; and John Morris, a former FBI supervisor who wept on the stand and admitted taking $7,000 in bribes from Bulger and Flemmi and leaking them information.
Callahan's widow, Mary, said the verdict has brought some welcome closure to herself and her two children.
"I know who and why after 26 years,'' said Mary Callahan, adding that the trial brought answers to all of her questions aabout her husband's murder. "Bulger is the worst thing that ever happened to Boston."
Connolly "was good at his job until he got touched by Whitey," Mary Callahan said. "He chose to do the wrong thing and he's going to pay for it. Unfortunately, so will his family."
Casabielle said he thought the verdict was probably a compromise by jurors, who found Connolly not guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and not guilty of first-degree murder, and instead unanimously found Connolly guilty of just one lesser charge.
He said Connolly, like the rest of the defense team, was distraught over the verdict, but believes he has many good issues on appeal.
As for whether the verdict clearly meant that jurors believed the testimony of the government's killer witnesses, Flemmi and Martorano, Casabielle frowned and rolled his eyes.
"I don't know what to make of it,'' Casabielle said. "I would be very sad if people believed Martorano or Flemmi. "Their lack of moral standards is so crystal clear. I don't know how anyone could believe them.''
Miami-Dade Assistant State Attorney Michael Von Zamft, who prosecuted the case with Wyshak, said Connolly's second-degree murder conviction means that jurors understood that "there was a total disregard for human life if he's giving out that information."
After the courtroom was cleared and reporters and a few bystanders were still milling around outside, Connolly, dressed in a red prison jumpsuit, shackles and handcuffs, was led down the hallway at 4:38 p.m, heading back to the local jail.
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I'm glad this Florida jury had more brains than OJ's.
Connolly is a scumbag.
I've got more respect for the criminals he was associated with than him. They were always criminals, Connolly was supposed to be on the right side of the law and let his ego get in the way of his job.
Justice. Although way too little and way too late.
A just verdict.
A gangster wannabe and Bulger sycophant made others pay because his ego was bigger than his conscience.
Connolly personifies the insidious Southie/Irish blood-is-thicker-than-water code of "honor". Pathetic and ultimately destructive.
Good riddance.
I have been reading the books, about their crimes and it is scary the things they did. Those people were all scums. God have mercy on them.
This is what I was talking about the other day. Connoly was convicted. I guess everyone is human, because I never thought he would get convicted. !!
He got what he deserved rot in jail.
I am so happy he was found guilty. He was surposed to protect the public not kill us. I hope he gets to room with Flemmi.
Sad when we as law abiding people believe that the FBI is there to protect us and not destroy us.
Too bad Connolly couldn't get Mike Barnicle or Q Crane to testify for him. At the least Mike should have put out a puff piece on "Chronicle".
That scumbag is worse then the bad guys. At least with the gangsters you knew where you stood...
Hey, he did some things for sure, but he is a scapegoat for the FBI. He has been convicted by the testimony of known rapists and murderers that made deals to stay alive (and changed their stories). Please. Justice? Scumbags killing scumbags. Get a clue.
Matarano and Weeks are free.. Flemmi was spared the death penalty ..Why do we believe those rats. John, a decorated FBI agent, did his job, with the consent of his boss Morris, who is free, and at the direction of the FBI... ...
Those were the rules ... he played by them and was successful doing it... The FBI used him to bring down the Boston Mafia and now they convict him...
my heart goes out to Liz and the boys
The wheels grind slowly (let me remind you) but grind they do and betrayers
such as Connolly face justice at the hand of twelve citizens
Still mind boggling that they guy who actually committed the murder goes home a free man.
Better late than never
And what did we learn today? talking to the FBI is hazardous to your health.
Connolly made his bed. sleep tight.
He got payoff$ for his part.... Playing both sides...loyal only to himself... He got what he deserved !!!
All these long years of waiting...and now, finally, following an extensive trial incorporating a zealous prosecution and an equally zealous defense we have a verdict of guilty! It's quite an example of a slow, deliberate system of justice pushed and prodded to its limit to get the job done. Please, no crying from any of you ex FBI OC squad buddies of JC. He was a fed on the take, a disgrace, and now a convicted murdered. My only dissatisfaction is that several of you guys are just like him. May each of you also face your day in court!
Yes they are all scum FBI, US Attorney's Office, Organized Crime Task Force they all used Whitey's gang to take down Angulo and Boston Italian Mob and now say it was all done by this one guy! C'mon we aren't that stupid!!!
You all are missing a very disgusting tragedy. First, it's obvious what Connelly did was terrible and should be punished, but at the same time none of you have any idea what is was like in the FBI back then. He is likely to spend the rest of his life in prison. Is that fair considering the following? Did any of you notice that in lieu of testifying the real criminals are getting out of JAIL!!! Matrorano committed 20 murders and is now free!!!!? WTF! As far as I'm concerned, our government is still corrupt and those prosecutors should spend time in jail for making plea bargins with these people that have no soul.
I wish I still had friends there John.I would make some calls for you.
Lets face it, the government needed a fall guy and Connolly was the
one....
So the government spends millions to convict an over the hill rogue G man. What is the benefit to society.
There are better uses of the money
to the friend is there anyway he can appeal. i really think he was set up. what do you say about that. i really don't think he should of been guilty.
Even if he was told by Morris or others in the FBI to leak the Callahan info he is not absolved. He was writing Callahan's obit and he knew it. If he was told to leak it (is there any evidence that suggests as much?) he should have walked away. That's a complete sh*t choice to have to make but the choice he made got him to this point.
This is par for the courzse for an FBI agent. The corruption in this agency is ledgend
Just goes to show , JUSTICE WILL PREVAIL.
Somewhere, Somehow, Gerry Anguillo is smiling......and even he thought he'd never see that day -
Kudos to the Globe and Shelley Murphy for the coverage. Many thanks. Shelly you are a real pro.
All I can say is "poor bastard." Connolly is in a sense a victim. He did what FBI agents were trained to do, to protecting their informants. He may have gone a little over the line by taking some gifts and cash but in his mind it was not corruption because it did not affect what he otherwise would have done. Plus, he shared many of the gifts with his fellow agents.
He should have testified. He should have said he did what he was expected to do. Even Morris, his supervisor but really his lackey who testified against Connolly, said at the first trial he tipped off Flemmi about a wiretap that could have trapped him. Morris said their job was to protect their informants. Ask the State Police how Morris tipped off Whitey and Stevie about its bug.
Connolly a murderer, absolutely not. A dope, very much so. He put his trust in the Bureau which stuck it to him. A sad, sad, case.
Yeah.
But James B is still FREE!
Johnny boy can walk if he just gives us The Corrupt Midget. The true leader of the entire mob..........give up the runt of Southie, Johnny Boy!
Brother Billy knows full well where brother Whitey has been hiding as the real murderer.
How can we wrest that information from a man we've also given a huge pension?
Perhaps if we curtailed that pension, he'd confess.
" Please. Justice? Scumbags killing scumbags. Get a clue.
Posted by Heythere November 6, 08 04:50 PM"
You need to get a clue. Among the people killed were Roger Wheeler, a completely legit businessman and family man who hired what he though was an honest retired FBI agent to provide security, a naive 18 year old girl who became Flemmi's girlfriend (he killed her when she announced she wanted to break up), a father of two killed years back because he was driving a blue sedan when the gang was looking for someone else in a blue sedan, a high sclool senior on the way to her senior prom -- survived but crippled for life bc Martorano shot at the wrong car (hey, it's fun, why not?); it goes on. It's attittudes like yours which allowed the gang to continue for so many years. They're SCUM and should all be taken down like in the old days, by burning alive in public. We're WAY too soft on organized crime.
(spoiler alert)
I think he's getting off easy, it'd be a lot better if he was found not guilty, then returned to his apartment with a bag of groceries and Marky Mark put a cap in his #$@%
I am as happy as one could be. I remember him walking around town like he owned it. I also recall that Joe Pesci accent he could turn on in a minute
so as to make anyone assume that the guy was straight out of Goodfella's.
The bad thing is that others did not go with him and there were more than a few.
A classic example of " real life" being stranger than Fiction.... what a sordid trail of sleazy characters from" both sides" of the Law! The Boston FBI Office, US Attorney Office, Organized Crime Task Force , Boston Police HQ, State Police are all guilty of failing to " serve and protect". How in God's name can that psychotic, remorseless scumbag Matarano be allowed to walk the streets after murdering 20 PEOPLE in cold blood?! Incredible...
He didnt kill anyone.How can a person be found guilty of murder by just saying some words to another . then u get some guys who cant do time and they RAT on everyone else Then u get a guy who kills for a living and gets caught but is so afraid 2 die so he makes a deal 2 stay alive RAT PU--Y.So every day they can wake up 2 the RAT.THEMSELVS.At least John was a solid stand up guy. And as far as Whity.If they wanted him found he would be found.
is anyone of the people here commenting, from boston or southie?? do u really know what ur talking about???
So I guess the movie "The Departed" wasnt so far off! Nicholson's part was "Frank Costello" who was protected by the F.B.I. for years! Connolly got what he deserved, you can't give the FBI the finger and get away with it! Where ever "Whitey" is he's still laughing cause he screwed them all! FBI, Boston Police, Massachusetts State Police, Mob in Providence,New York etc. This is a real "Goodfellas" movie coming to a theatre near you! LOL I think Whiteys in Mexico living like a King, under a Jewish name, like Finklestien or something! LOL
I think they were all dirty, Rico, Newton, Nick G, Morris, etc... but Connolly took it to another level. He as did Rico, absolutley knew for sure that Callahan would get wacked, and were not talking about Tommy King or Brian Halloran here.. Callahan was basically a citizen and a wannabe. Not a scumbag rapist drug dealer. Just toss out there that someone is a rat to whitey and stevie, and poof their gone. As far as the Mafia goes, I still think that was an inside job. Jerry had a lot of enemies, not just Stevie and Whitey.
Feds on the take????? Back to the days of Al Capone...........we need more Elliot Ness's and less John Connolly's. Just like an Irish whimp to get greedy and corrupt. He was Mr. Cool Man.....now he'll be Mr. Get the Soap Man!!!!!!!!! What a coward. The Italian Mob will rise again!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations Florida, and thanks! For those who say that Connolly is a victim or fallguy or whatever nonsense, you're wrong. John Connolly thought he was Mister Big Guy all decked out in his flashy suits and jewelry thinking he was so smart playing both sides. He was worse than any of the venal, miserable criminals with whom he hung out. Let's face it, partying with Whitey must have been a hell of a lot more glizy than the annual FBI Christmas party. This man is one of the rare people I really despise.
Ah well, another wannabe gangster bites the dust. A life bid isn't going to hurt an old geezer like this too much, at best he'll serve ten years and die. And all you goofs who didn't know the man, his victims or anything more than what was in the paper can now point your silly righteous indignantionat something else. Have at it.
John Connolly is an innocent man, and i hope someday this corrupt justice department will relize it. Their was absolutly no evidence to convict john connolly of this charge, and in no way was he guilty. These prosecutors are the ones who should be going to jail, the scumbags that they are.
Unfreakin' believable - again! Only in America can a bunch of thug white trash losers continue on a killing and crime spree for 20+ years and only receive a little tap on the wrist. Case in point: Weeks and Martorano are walking free. But then comes the tax paying regular Joe who went to work every day and did what his micro managing boss wanted him to do. Unfortunately now, for John C. he came from the same crime riddle scum section of Boston that Whitey did and the Big Boss saw an in; "Give them what they want". John got sucked in and used up. And now this poor guy is the only one serving time???? Doesn't make sense. This country is seriously going to hell in a handbasket. It's high time the "system" is reviewed. Weeks and Martorano both should be locked up forever. Weeks pretends to be reformed but any SOB that can dump a cripple out of a wheelchair needs some crib time and to become somes wife!
P.O.S. deserves death by torture, nothing less. He'll get his soon. We'll read it in the papers on page 27 when the bi-line says Fed Rat dies in jail.
John is now facing a lengthy sentence. John Martorano is now walking the streets. Watch your back, John M. He agreed to provide info [acutally rat out others ] in return for his freedom. In open court in Florida, John M admitted that he agreed to provide the feds with information leading to the demise of many criminal associates in Boston. So much for his 60 Minutes claim that he was not a RAT. The feds made the deal with the devil. In court, the names of Pat Nee, George Hogan and five other criminals in Boston are on the list. Again, the names are part of the court record in Florida.
The saddest part is the guys who actually killed people walking the streets today. How does that make ANY sense????
I really know now our systems are more corrupt than the corrupted. I cannot believe they can put those people on the stand and took there word for crap convicted murderers give me a break. All i can say is appeal and keep on fighting our system needs to be on trial. I believe mr connolly is innocent i couldnt believe when i read he was convicted i had to read it twice.
RE: OJ - from what I've read, there was more evidence linking his son to the murder than there was to him (gloves, knives, earlier similar attempted attack on another woman, motivation, argument with Nicolethe same day, stalking). It was just not ever introduced in court. This doesn't mean that OJ didn't make himself an accessory when he protected his son by remaining silent - as many parents would in the same situation.
The bigger question is why is Boston and Massachusetts so g.d. corrupt?
Not all states are this corrupt.
Why are you people so upset,, The whole government, especially Boston is corrupt,,Look what Bush did to us for 8 agonizing years, How many innocent lives have been lost because of him,,,This government robbed us to the point we are losing our homes and jobs ,, But hey, its ok,, he,s the president,,,what Connoly did was miniscule compared to what this government does to people every single day,,dont forget, Law enforcement Lie, Plant evidence, they are as corrupt as any other organized crime or government agency,,,Money rules,power rules,,, smarten up folks,,
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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