Highway robbery

Jeffrey Scalf admits John Dillinger had flaws, but he prefers to remember him as a quick-witted charmer who was part playboy and part rebel. Scalf says he has proof his great-uncle did not kill a cop in 1934.
(Photo by AJ Mast / For The Los Angeles Times)

Check out this great story by a former colleague of mine, P.J. Huffstutter, over at the Los Angeles Times. She writes about a man named Jeffrey Scalf who is on a crusade to watch for those who profit off the name of his deceased and infamous great uncle, John Dillinger, the bank robber the FBI once dubbed Public Enemy No. 1. Scarf says you can call him a robber, but he was no killer.

He was charged with gunning down Police Officer William Patrick O'Malley during the January 1934 robbery of the First National Bank of East Chicago, Ind. But the case never went to trial. Dillinger was killed before the jury was selected.

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Since 2001, Scalf has filed lawsuits or threatened legal action against those who blame his great-uncle for the police officer's killing, including cafe owners, museum organizers, historical societies and rural township officials. He has demanded that anyone using the name sign a waiver promising not to portray the bandit as vicious or mean-spirited.

"John did some bad things. He lived a tragic life," says Scalf. "But he was no killer."