Louis Buchalter - Conviction and Execution

Conviction and Execution

The New York Court of Appeals, on review of Buchalter's case, upheld his conviction and death sentence in October 1942 by a vote of 4-3. (People v. Buchalter, 289 N.Y. 181) Two of the dissenting judges thought the evidence was so weak that errors in the judge's instructions to the jury as to how to evaluate certain testimony were harmful enough to require a re-trial. The third dissenter agreed, but added that, in his opinion, there was insufficient evidence to sustain a guilty verdict, so the indictment should be dismissed altogether (failure of proof means no retrial).

The United States Supreme Court granted Buchalter's petition to review the case and in a full opinion affirmed the conviction, 7-0, with two justices abstaining. (319 U.S. 427 (1943)) In the Supreme Court, Buchalter was represented by Arthur Garfield Hays, a leader of the trial bar who was general counsel for the ACLU and had a private practice consisting of wealthy, powerful clients.

At the time of the affirmation of his conviction, Buchalter was serving his racketeering sentence at Leavenworth Federal Prison. New York State authorities demanded that the federal government turn over Buchhalter for execution. Buchalter resisted, managing to remain in Kansas and out of New York's hands until extradited in January 1944. After his last appeal for mercy was rejected, Louis Buchalter was executed on March 4, 1944 in the electric chair in Sing Sing. On the same day, a few minutes before Buchalter's execution, his lieutenants Weiss and Capone were also executed.

Louis Buchalter was buried at the Mount Hebron Cemetery in Flushing, Queens.