The Purple Gang: Organized Crime in Detroit 1910-1945
| Author | Paul Kavieff |
| Publication information | Barricade Books, April 25, 2000, 214 pages |
| Abbreviation | ISBN-13 978-1569801475 |
Gallery
Purple Gang bookcover
Narrative
The Purple Gang, a group of mostly Jewish immigrants who prospered during Prohibition days in Detroit, was ruthless and untouchable for a number of years.
They supplied liquor to blind pigs (establishments that sold liquor illegally), hijacked liquor shipments by land and water, watered down whiskey, and committed kidnappings, murder, and more.
Toward the end of their reign, the colorful group self-destructed and started killing one another.
Kavieff, an engineer at Wayne State University and a historian of organized crime, even supplies photographs of bullet-ridden bodies.
Each chapter starts out by recounting a gruesome crime.
Kavieff provides a detailed index and an extensive bibliography, which readers can use to keep the thugs straight.