THE DEVIL LOOKS AFTER HIS OWN
The state of Florida was embarrassed by this incident and vowed not to allow another corrupt election to occur in Tampa. The following year, 1935, D.B. McKay and Robert E. Chauncey were embroiled in a heated election for mayor of Tampa. To squash any corruption, the National Guard was called in to guard the ballot boxes. Even when faced with military weapons, Charlie Wall’s supporters tried to stuff the ballot boxes, and chaos erupted throughout the city. Men and women were beaten to death in riots, poll workers were threatened, and dozens of men were arrested for repeat voting, including Charlie Wall’s old friend, George “Saturday” Zarate. During the election madness, a hurricane rumbled through Florida with winds exceeding 100 miles per hour. By the time the election turmoil and the hurricane winds finally died, the city of Tampa was in ruins regarding infrastructure and reputation.
The election made national headlines. Embarrassed, the city finally decided it had to end the corruption. To do so, it replaced the paper ballot system with lever machines. Unable to stuff the ballot boxes, Charlie Wall could no longer handpick city leaders. No longer protected by the city and no longer untouchable, other criminal syndicates, specifically the Sicilian mafia, were allowed to flourish.
In 1938, Charlie Wall’s good friend and business partner, Tito Rubio, was gunned down in front of their gambling parlor, the Lincoln Club. Charlie Wall knew the police would have to visit the club as part of their investigation. His friends and supporters begged him to clean out all the gambling equipment and shut the club down. He refused, stating he hoped that by keeping it operational, the murderer would return to come after him. The murderer never returned to the club. When the police arrived to investigate the scene of the murder and found the Lincoln Club still operating, they arrested Charlie Wall. They charged him with running an illegal gambling establishment.
Charlie Wall was again acquitted, but not before he promised to tell the grand jury everything they wanted to know about Tampa’s underworld. He claimed that by doing so, he hoped it would help the police find his friend’s murderer. The murderer was never found, and his support dwindled even more when word got out that Charlie Wall had sung to the grand jury.
