Third mistrial for Gotti Junior

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15030317/

John Gotti Jr. got a third mistrial. The charge is whether he continued to receive mob money after he claims to have "quit" the Gambino crime family in 1999, meaning the statute of limitations would have expired before the charges were brought in 2004.
The odd thing is, this article, describing Gotti's mistrials, doesn't say a thing about jury tampering. The mob has been doing that for years, and with one mistrial after another, I have to wonder if Gotti's goons are intimidating jurors. Each mistrial has been caused by a jury deadlock. We have to remember who Gotti Junior learned the family business from, a man called the "Teflon Don" because no law enforcement agency could get a charge to stick to him, none other than the legendary John Gotti Senior. While Gotti Junior is no match for his father, he clearly learned something from him on how to get out of the clutches of law enforcement. But even Gotti Senior's luck ran out eventually (he died in prison a few years ago, likely still running the business from inside).
As the last of the great American crime families goes down in flames, I can't help thinking an era has passed. I know it's not exactly a healthy outlook, but America has always had its high-profile mobsters; Capone, Luciano, Siegel, Lansky, Gambino, Gotti, and so many others, who murdered and pillaged, but looked damn good doing it and captured the attention of mainstream society, a dark menace that was undeniably appealing. With this breed dead, all we have left are street gangs, low-rent hoods with no class or style. But maybe this shows us something too. If we strip away the veneer off these legendary mobsters, all we're left with is violent criminals. But you can't help admiring, or at least being fascinated by, a guy who looks like he belongs in a Wall Street power lunch meeting while working underground.
On a personal note, I'm writing again. Last night I did some more work on a novel-in-progress (what writer doesn't have at least one of those?), created a new idea for a story, and looked over an old poem that, to my horror, still has relevance in my life. It's about me in a relationship with a guy who ignored me with the exception of certain times he thought it was okay to bring me back into his life. I first wrote it four years ago, and very little has changed. I might post it on here sometime, if I can get it just to my liking.