A Cop's Perspective on THE STRANGLER, by John Daley

Jack Daley - 1951 Photo

I received the manuscript of THE STRANGLER one day in June 2006. I started reading that afternoon and finished the next day. The novel was especially interesting to me because I recognized many of the situations and I was delighted with the novel's treatment of them.

Bill obviously did plenty of research into the Strangler history. It was all pretty accurate. Some things that he mentioned amazed me: the Chantilly Lounge, the Cactus Room, Steve McGrail’s, the Greyhound Bus terminal, the key shop. (By the way, the bookie known as The Monkey, who ran the key shop, went to jail and served his time without saying a word, making his reputation as a stand-up guy.)

In other matters, the treatment of Joe Daley’s fall from grace was actually mirrored in real life. In the 1950’s and early 60’s, the BPD had an intelligence detective who was embedded with the mob, and it was believed that he had taken part in some of their criminal activities. But he kept a very low profile and he was never exposed. He retired and, I think, is deceased. Two other officers in the 1960’s became leg breakers for the mob. Both were patrolmen, both big, well-built guys, and neither one was very smart. One was murdered by his girlfriend, the other left the force early.

Of course, a number of FBI agents in Boston became entangled with the mob as well. The local Mafioso Frank Salemme testified before a Congressional committee that an FBI agent, Paul Rico, was intimately involved in mob murders. And John Connolly, famously, protected Whitey Bulger for years.

So switching sides, though uncommon, does occur in the law enforcement business.

Another episode in THE STRANGLER that mirrored actual events was Ricky's break-in at the North End headquarters of the mob boss. In the early 1980s, the FBI did in fact break into the "dog house," the offices of mobster Gerry Angiulo on Prince Street. They actually shut down the North End in the early morning hours to plant the listening devices and then broke in twice more to replace the batteries in the "bugs." It was an incredible achievement which allowed them to bring down Angiulo. The BPD did not have the will or capability to bring down Angiulo. It was the FBI’s finest hour. Unfortunately they have been so tarnished by the Bulger matter that they no longer have any credibility in the law enforcement business

As for the theft of the Christ child from the Nativity scene, I can only say that it is very cold on the Boston Common in December but the statue never vanished on my watch!

I think that THE STRANGLER is a home run.

— Jack Daley
Captain (retired), Boston Police Department

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