Maurice Edelbaum (1906–1984) was an American criminal lawyer from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Edelbaum was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was educated in

New York City public schools The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) is the department of the government of New York City that manages the city's public school system. The City School District of the City of New York (or the New York City Public Schools) is t ...

before graduating from Fordham University School of Law in 1928. In 1957, he represented Vincent Gigante in his trial for shooting

Frank Costello Frank Costello (; born Francesco Castiglia; ; January 26, 1891 – February 18, 1973) was an Italian-American crime boss of the Luciano crime family. In 1957, Costello survived an assassination attempt ordered by Vito Genovese and carried out by ...

to help Vito Genovese usurp the top position in Luciano Crime Family. In 1967, Edelbaum served as a lawyer for Stephen H. Kessler, a former medical student who was found not guilty by reason of insanity after being charged with murdering his mother-in-law. The same year, Edelbaum also was a lawyer for John (Sonny) Franzese, a bank robber in the Colombo crime family. Two years later, Edelbaum defended a Tammany Hall leader, De Sapio. Despite his attempt to prove his innocence, De Sapio was found guilty of conspiracy to bribe a water commissioner and extort contracts from

Consolidated Edison Consolidated Edison, Inc., commonly known as Con Edison (stylized as conEdison) or ConEd, is one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the United States, with approximately $12 billion in annual revenues as of 2017, and over $62 b ...

. His sentence was set to two years in prison. Edelbaum was also notorious for his defense of

Anthony Provenzano Anthony Provenzano (May 7, 1917 – December 12, 1988), also known as Tony Pro, was an American mobster who was a powerful caporegime in the Genovese crime family New Jersey faction. Provenzano was known for his associations with Jimmy Hoffa du ...

. Edelbaum died on August 10, 1984, in Washington Manor Nursing Home in

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

References

1906 births 1984 deaths Fordham University School of Law alumni Lawyers from Brooklyn 20th-century American lawyers {{US-law-bio-stub