On March 7, 1930, Assistant Secretary Lowman of the Treasury Department sounded the alarm on a brazen scheme by rum runners to evade justice. The loophole in question allowed seized vessels to be returned to the liquor racket through a clever exploit in federal law. Lowman, speaking to the United Press, revealed that hundreds of boats had been seized along the Canadian border, only to be reclaimed by the very bootleggers who had been caught red-handed.
The problem, Lowman explained, lay in a provision of the law that required seized craft to be sold to the highest bidder. Rum runners, anticipating this, had organized a racket to fix the maximum bid for seized small boats at a paltry $10 and for larger vessels at a mere $50. Any would-be bidder who dared to outdo these artificially low prices risked being intimidated or even injured as a warning against future attempts.
Florida rum runners, in particular, had perfected this racket, using the loophole to their advantage and continuing to ply their illicit trade with impunity. The Treasury Department, determined to plug this loophole, is now seeking a change in the law to bring an end to this system of corruption and deceit.
Lowman has called for the issue to be brought before Congress and the Wickersham Law Enforcement Commission, in the hope that a solution can be found to this pressing problem. Until then, the rum runners will continue to outmaneuver the law, using every trick in the book to stay one step ahead of justice.
The Treasury Department’s efforts to crack down on the rum running trade have been hindered by this clever exploit, and it remains to be seen whether a change in the law will be enough to bring these lawbreakers to heel.
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Key Facts
- State: National
- Category: Organized Crime
- Era: Historical
- Source: Library of Congress — Chronicling America ↗
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