Benjamin "Dopey Benny" Fein (c. 1889–1962) was an early Jewish American

gangster A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...

who dominated New York labor racketeering in the 1910s. With a criminal record dating back to 1900, Fein's arrest record included thirty charges from petty theft and assault to grand larceny and murder (of which he was acquitted twice due to lack of evidence). Fein was nicknamed "Dopey Benny" because of his eyes always being halfway-closed due to a medical condition.

Biography

Born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1889, Fein grew up in a poor neighborhood on Lower East Side becoming a petty thief and

pickpocket Pickpocketing is a form of larceny that involves the stealing of money or other valuables from the person or a victim's pocket without them noticing the theft at the time. It may involve considerable dexterity and a knack for misdirection. A th ...

as a child. A talented organizer, Fein had formed his own gang of robbers in 1905, and during the next 5 years Fein was sent to

Elmira Reformatory Elmira Correctional Facility, also known as "The Hill," is a maximum security state prison located in Chemung County, New York, in the City of Elmira. It is operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Th ...

several times, including serving years for

armed robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the perso ...

. Soon after his release in 1910 Fein joined "Big"

Jack Zelig "Big" Jack Zelig (May 13, 1888 – October 5, 1912) was an American gangster and one of the last leaders of the Eastman Gang. Biography Born Selig Harry Lefkowitz in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City, New York, Zelig was a well ...

's organization, soon becoming involved in labor union and

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

of the Garment District. Fein also used his gang as labor sluggers, renting his gang out to either unions or companies, dominating much of New York's East Side eventually earning $20,000 a year. In 1913 several minor labor slugger gangs formed to break the monopoly held by Fein and rival

Joseph Rosenzweig Joseph "Joe The Greaser" Rosenzweig (born c. 1891, year of death unknown) was an American New York City labor racketeer in the early 1900s as an ally of "Dopey" Benny Fein during the Labor Slugger Wars (1914–1917). Biography Born in Romania, R ...

in which a large shootout took place on Grand Street and

Forsyth Street Forsyth Street runs from Houston Street south to Henry Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The street was named in 1817 for Lt. Colonel Benjamin Forsyth. Forsyth Street's southernmost portion, south of Canal Street, runs parall ...

lasting several hours, although few were killed, beginning the New York

Labor slugger war The Labor Sluggers War was a 15-year period of gang wars among New York City labor sluggers for control of labor racket (crime), racketeering from 1911 to 1927. This began in 1911 with the first war between "Dopey" Benny Fein and Joseph Rosenzweig ...

that would last almost four years. Arrested for assault in 1914, Fein agreed to testify against several members involved in labor slugging when his political connections refused to help Fein resulting in the indictments of eleven gangsters and 21 union officials; however, none would be brought to trial. That same year Fein was again arrested for the murder of court clerk

Frederick Strauss Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederi ...

, who was killed in the crossfire during a shootout near St. Mark's Place; however, he was later released when witnesses could not identify Fein at the scene. In 1915, Fein was arrested again and convicted on a murder charge. After his release in 1917 for the labor slugging related murder two years earlier, Fein's power had declined and by the end of the gang war, with Rosenzweig in prison for manslaughter, Fein decided to retire becoming a successful garment businessman. In July 1931, appearing in court for the first time in thirteen years, Fein was arraigned at

Essex Market Court Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

felonious assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

charges along with Samuel Hirsch and Samuel Rubin after throwing acid on local Brooklyn businessman Mortimer Kahn. In 1941, Fein was arrested by detectives in a police raid ordered by District Attorney

Thomas E. Dewey Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: although ...

during which mobsters Abraham Cohen, John Ferraro and two Dallas businessmen, Herman Fogel and Samuel Klein, were also taken into custody after purchasing a recently stolen garment shipment valued at $10,000. He and Cohen were named as the ringleaders of a criminal gang that from armed robbery and burglary, took in an estimated $250,000 over a three-year period raiding the city's garment industry. Held in

The Tombs ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

until their trial, Fein was spared a mandatory life sentence for fourth-time offenders and instead received a reduced sentence of ten to 20 years disappearing from public records sometime after.

References

External links

*
Six For Five blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fein, Benny 1880s births 1962 deaths American male criminals American people with disabilities Jewish American gangsters People acquitted of murder

Biography

References

Further reading

External links