The Purple Gang was the only Jewish gang to ever dominate the underworld in a major American city. But judging by their obscurity in the decades following their demise, you would hardly know it. A new book chronicles the gang’s rise, fall, and subsequent vanishing act. In The Elusive Purple Gang: Detroit’s Kosher Nostra, Gregory A. Fournier captures the fast and furious reign of the Purples as they ruled the fourth largest city in America. At their height, the Purples counted no more than 50 members. But the gang’s power and influence extended far beyond their own ranks to City Hall and the Detroit Police Department through a network of bribes. This influence, along with a terrified citizenry, allowed them to operate with impunity for several years. The gang was a confederation of independent crews controlled by...

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