Do you remember Jimmy Hoffa? Well, you must be at least over 40. He was a major force in organized labor after World War II. Nobody was neutral about Hoffa - you either thought he was near God, or that he was the devil incarnate. This is what Wikipedia has to say about him. And, of course, this is his photo.
This spring the Chattanooga Chapter of the Federal Trial Lawyers Association met here (I think that's the name - at least close). The Chapter underwrote the making a documentary about the federal trial of Hoffa for jury tampering. The Chattanooga Trial of U.S. vs James R. Hoffa was held in Chattanooga in 1964. It was high drama - the stuff that John Grisham should be writing about - except nobody'd believe it.
A feud between the Attorney General (the President's Brother) and the most powerful labor leader in the country. Spying, wire-tapping, informants - on both sides. A trial for racketeering, ending in a mistrial in Nashville, which led to a trial for jury tampering. Because of pre-trial publicity, the trial was moved to Chattanooga. And now there are incorruptible judges, teams of prosecution and defense attorneys, surprise witnesses. Spell-binding stuff!
The film, The Chattanooga Trial of U.S. vs James R. Hoffa, was shown at a program presented by the Chattanooga Arts and Education Council. What a great opportunity this was for those able to attend. I asked the producer if the film was going to be released where it could be seen by a wider audience, such as to PBS. He said not at this time. The film is owned by the Trial Lawyers Association and, although the local PBS station has expressed interest in showing it, it's not currently being made available to them. I hope it does appear sometime. Watch for it.
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