Larry Hoover
Larry Hoover | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 30, 1950[1][2] Jackson, Mississippi, United States |
| Other names | King Larry |
| Criminal status | Imprisoned at ADX Florence in Florence, Colorado[4] |
| Spouse(s) | Bertha Mosby (common–law wife)[3] |
| Children |
|
| Conviction(s) |
|
| Criminal penalty | Six life sentences |
Date apprehended | March 16, 1973 |
Larry Hoover (born November 30, 1950)[2][1][5] is an American gang leader, co-founder of the Chicago street gang Gangster Disciples. Hoover is serving six life sentences at the ADX Florence prison in Florence, Colorado. He was sentenced to 150–200 years for a 1973 murder and in 1997, after a 17-year investigation of conspiracy, extortion, money laundering, and running a continuing criminal enterprise for leading the gang from state prison, he received a life sentence.
Biography
1973 murder of William Young
On the evening of February 26, 1973, William "Pooky" Young, a 19-year old neighborhood drug dealer, was abducted and later shot to death in an alley near 68th Street and Union Avenue in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood. His killing was ordered by Hoover after his name was mentioned as one of three people accused of stealing drugs and money from the gang five days earlier.[6] On March 16, 1973, Hoover — along with Young's killer, Black Disciple member Andrew Howard — were both arrested. In November 1973, Howard and Hoover were both charged with murder and sentenced to 150 to 200 years in prison. Hoover was sent to Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill, Illinois, to serve out his term.[7][8]
Gangster Disciples leader and events
In 1974, after the leader of the Black Disciples, David Barksdale, died from kidney failure by an injury due to an earlier shooting, Hoover took the reins of the Black Gangster Disciples Nation while under his wing, which now had control of Chicago's South Side. Under Hoover's rule, the Black Gangster Disciples took over the South Side drug trade. While incarcerated, Hoover helped form the Folks Nation, which added other gangs such as: Black Disciples, Satan Disciples, Ambrose, Two-Two Boys, Gangster Two-Six, Simon City Royals, North Side Insane Popes, La Raza Nation, Spanish Cobras, Imperial Gangsters, Maniac Latin Disciples, Harrison Gents, Spanish Gangster Disciples and Latin Eagles. In 1989, The Black Gangster Disciples started to go against their own merger and ally, the Black Disciples, over a drug-dealing dispute in the neighborhood of Englewood, Chicago, that escalated into a shooting that killed several people. This infuriated members of BGDs and resulted in them changing their name into the "Gangster Disciples." While Hoover was incarcerated, he ran the gang's illicit drug trade both in prison and on the streets, starting from Chicago's West Side and later extending throughout the United States. By early 1993, Hoover claimed to have renounced his violent criminal past and became an urban political celebrity in Chicago. The Gangster Disciples earned fans in the community with charity events and peaceful protests. Hoover proclaimed that the initials GD had changed to mean "Growth & Development." A lengthy federal investigation using wiretaps led to Hoover getting another life sentence in 1995. Prosecutors alleged that Hoover's gang had 30,000 "soldiers" in 35 states and made $100 million a year.
Conviction
While in prison for murder, on August 22, 1995, after a 17-year undercover investigation by the federal government, Hoover was indicted for drug conspiracy, extortion, and continuing to engage in a criminal enterprise.[9] He was arrested at the Dixon Correctional Center by federal agents, and moved to the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago to stand trial. In 1997, Hoover was found guilty on all charges. Hoover is currently serving his sentence at the United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility in Florence, Colorado.[4][10]
On October 11, 2018, during a luncheon with President Donald Trump, rapper Kanye West pleaded for clemency for Hoover.[11]
In popular culture
On Kanye West's 2021 album Donda, the tracks “Jesus Lord” and “Jesus Lord, Pt. 2” feature a recorded message by Larry Hoover Jr, son of Larry Hoover Sr, in which he outlines the cracks in America's criminal justice system and talks about the impact of Hoover's incarceration on his family.[12]
Larry Hoover also appears via phone from prison on multiple tracks of Geto Boys' 1996 album "The Resurrection" where he discusses his views on the prison system and the youth of the black community.
See also
References
- ^ a b Standing Eight: The Inspiring Story of Jesus "El Matador" Chavez By Adam Pitluk
- ^ a b Vibe Sep 1995
- ^ "Hoover's Girlfriend Helping U.s. Case". tribunedigital-chicagotribune.
- ^ a b "Inmate Locator – BOP Register No. 86063-024". Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ "Larry Hoover". Biography.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ The Gang that Could Go Straight – Ever since he read Boss, tttLarry Hoover knew he wanted to mold his street gang into a political organization like the old Daley Machine. He's still in jail, but 21st Century V.O.T.E. is ready to roll; Chicago Reader
- ^ "Larry Hoover". Infoplease.
- ^ Leagle: People v. Howard (1975)
- ^ "Larry Hoover & The Gangster Disciples". Drug Enforcement Administration. Archived from the original on 2013-06-26.
- ^ Binelli, Mark (26 March 2015). "Inside America's Toughest Federal Prison". New York Times. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ "Here's every word of Kanye West's bizarre meeting with President Trump". USA Today. Retrieved 2018-10-14.
- ^ ""Free my father, Larry Hoover Sr" on Kanye West's Donda album explained". The Focus. 2021-08-06. Retrieved 2021-08-14.
Further reading
- Cooley, Will (2017). "Jim Crow Organized Crime: Black Chicago's Underground Economy in the Twentieth Century". In Weems, Robert; Chambers, Jason (eds.). Building the Black Metropolis: African American Entrepreneurship in Chicago. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 147–170. ISBN 978-0252082948.
External links
- Charges Against 6 Dropped In Illinois Prison Riot Trial, UPI (June 2, 1981)