Gangbuster : one man's battle against crime, corruption, and the Klan

A gripping and exhaustively researched, first-time account of a feared gangbuster's groundbreaking battles with organized crime, the KKK, and corruption at the highest levels of government sure to resonate with readers affected by the politics of contemporary society. At the height of the roaring 1920s, the ex-frontier town of Denver, Colorado, emerged from the postwar boom as the future of the American city. But the slick façade of progress and opportunity masked a murky stew of organized crime, elaborate swindles, and widespread government corruption. One man risked everything to alter the course of history.Rookie district attorney Phillip Van Cise was already making national headlines for a new brand of law enforcement. Employing military intelligence tools he'd developed during the Great War—wiretapping, undercover operatives, communication intercepts—Van Cise crippled the criminal empire of Lou Blonger, an ex-lawman who had risen from petty scam artist to master of the Big Con. But Van Cise had even darker, more malevolent forces on his radar. The Ku Klux Klan had emerged as a shockingly mainstream middle-class movement, employing anti-immigration scare tactics, encouraging vigilantism, and instigating culture wars, all while claiming to protect true American values. Van Cise saw the toxic ideology for what it was: a new version of the Big Con sold as populism. Utilizing his pioneering surveillance techniques, Van Cise was determined to expose the Invisible Empire from within. Gripping and exhaustively researched, this prescient chronicle of Phillip Van Cise’s spectacular career as a feared gangbuster taking on organized crime, the KKK, and corruption at the highest levels of government is a cautionary tale that mirrors our tumultuous times. As gripping as it is prescient, Gangbuster is the first-ever history of the battle waged by one rookie District Attorney, Philip Van Cise, against the KKK, organized crime, and government corruption at the highest levels throughout the 1920s. One century later, in the face of contemporary society's divisiveness and fearmongering politics, the personal courage of this maverick's battle against underworld figures and a mainstream white supremacist movement is more relevant and inspiring than ever. At the height of the roaring 1920s, the ex-frontier town of Denver, Colorado, emerged from the postwar boom as the future of the American city. But behind the modern faade seethed a murky brew of organized crime, elaborate swindles, and a widespread racist conspiracy. One man risked everything to alter the course of history. Rookie district attorney Phillip Van Cise was already making national headlines for a new brand of law enforcement. Employing military intelligence tools he'd developed during the Great War--wiretapping, undercover operatives, communication intercepts--Cise crippled the criminal empire of Lou Blonger, a mining tycoon who had risen from petty scam artist to master of the Big Con. But Cise had even darker, more malevolent forces on his radar. The Ku Klux Klan had emerged as a shockingly mainstream middle-class movement, employing anti-immigration fearmongering, encouraging vigilantism, instigating culture wars, and claiming to protect true American values. Van Cise saw the toxic ideology for what it was: a new configuration of the Big Con successfully sold as populism. Utilizing his pioneering surveillance techniques, Van Cise was determined to expose the Invisible Empire from within. Gripping and exhaustively researched, this is the first-ever full account of Phillip Van Cise's spectacular career as a feared gangbuster whose battles with organized crime, the KKK, and corruption at the highest levels of government forever changed the rules of engagement. A gripping and exhaustively researched, first-time account of a feared gangbuster's groundbreaking battles with organized crime, the KKK, and corruption at the highest levels of government sure to resonate with readers affected by the politics of contemporary society. At the height of the roaring 1920s, the ex-frontier town of Denver, Colorado, emerged from the postwar boom as the future of the American city. But the slick façade of progress and opportunity masked a murky stew of organized crime, elaborate swindles, and widespread government corruption. One man risked everything to alter the course of history. Rookie district attorney Phillip Van Cise was already making national headlines for a new brand of law enforcement. Employing military intelligence tools he'd developed during the Great War—wiretapping, undercover operatives, communication intercepts—Van Cise crippled the criminal empire of Lou Blonger, an ex-lawman who had risen from petty scam artist to master of the Big Con. But Van Cise had even darker, more malevolent forces on his radar. The Ku Klux Klan had emerged as a shockingly mainstream middle-class movement, employing anti-immigration scare tactics, encouraging vigilantism, and instigating culture wars, all while claiming to protect true American values. Van Cise saw the toxic ideology for what it was: a new version of the Big Con sold as populism. Utilizing his pioneering surveillance techniques, Van Cise was determined to expose the Invisible Empire from within. Gripping and exhaustively researched, this prescient chronicle of Phillip Van Cise's spectacular career as a feared gangbuster taking on organized crime, the KKK, and corruption at the highest levels of government is a cautionary tale that mirrors our tumultuous times. At the height of the 1920s, the ex-frontier town of Denver emerged from the postwar boom as the future of the American city. But the progress and opportunity masked a sew of organized crime, elaborate swindles, and widespread government corruption. Rookie district attorney Philip Van Cise employed military intelligence tools he'd developed during the war, and crippled the criminal empire of Lou Blonger. When the Ku Klux Klan employed anti-immigration scare tactics, vigilantism, and culture wars while claiming to protect true American values, Van Cise was determined to expose the Invisible Empire from within -- adapted from jacket An award-winning journalist presents the story of Philip Van Cise, a rookie District Attorney who fought the KKK, organized crime, and government corruption in Denver in the 1920s and how his experiences still resonate one century later