Lee Alexander (May 18, 1927 – December 25, 1996) was an American attorney and politician who served as the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Syracuse, New York for 16 years.

Career

Alexander was born in Jersey City, New Jersey. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

at the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He then graduated from Syracuse University in 1950 and

Syracuse University College of Law Syracuse University College of Law (SUCOL) is a Juris Doctor degree-granting law school of Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. It is one of only four law schools in upstate New York. Syracuse was accredited by the American Bar Association ...

in 1955. Alexander practiced law in Syracuse. In 1966 he won election to the Syracuse City Council. He was elected as mayor of Syracuse in 1969, and served from 1970 to 1985. He also served as the president of the

United States Conference of Mayors The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. The cities are each represented by their mayors or other chief elected officials. The organization was founded i ...

in 1977 and 1978, and was elected six times as the president of the

National Conference of Democratic Mayors The National Conference of Democratic Mayors is the representative body of city mayors in the United States affiliated to the Democratic Party, in the same way that the Democratic Governors Association represents state governors within the party. ...

. He unsuccessfully ran for the United States Senate in 1974, coming in second place in the Democratic primary after former United States Attorney General

Ramsey Clark William Ramsey Clark (December 18, 1927 – April 9, 2021) was an American lawyer, activist, and federal government official. A progressive, New Frontier liberal, he occupied senior positions in the United States Department of Justice under Pres ...

Conviction

After

Frederick Scullin Frederick James Scullin Jr. (born November 5, 1939) is an American attorney and Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. Education and career Scullin was born in Syracuse, Ne ...

was nominated to serve as a

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

, a probe was established after rumors surfaced about Alexander's relationships with city contractors. Eventually, the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

and Internal Revenue Service joined the investigation. On July 16, 1987, Alexander was indicted in the

United States District Court for the Northern District of New York The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (in case citations, N.D.N.Y.) serves one of the 94 judicial districts in the United States and one of four in the state of New York. Appeals from the Northern District of Ne ...

on 40 counts of extortion, income tax evasion, racketeering and conspiracy. In January 1988, Alexander pleaded guilty to racketeering and extortion, conspiracy to obstruct the Government's investigation and income-tax evasion on at least $1.2 million in bribes and kickbacks. As part of a plea bargain, he agreed to serve 10 years in prison and pay a $100,000 fine. Alexander spent nearly six years in jail for his crimes and was released from prison in 1994.

Death

Alexander died at his home of cancer on December 25, 1996.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Lee 1927 births 1996 deaths American people convicted of tax crimes American prisoners and detainees Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Mayors of Syracuse, New York Military personnel from New Jersey New York (state) Democrats New York (state) politicians convicted of crimes New York (state) politicians convicted of corruption Politicians convicted of extortion under color of official right Politicians convicted of racketeering Politicians from Jersey City, New Jersey 20th-century American politicians Presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors United States Army personnel of World War II