The Cornbread Mafia: A Homegrown Syndicate's Code of Silence and the Biggest Marijuana Bust in American History

by James Higdon

  The FBI field office's report of the bust of the Bickett brothers to FBI headquarters, "For the information of the bureau ... this cartel," comes from a memo released through an FOIA request.

  "Then, I think in'89 ..." comes from an interview with Charlie Bickett.

  The summary portrait of Grand Bend, Ontario, comes from telephone interviews conducted with the editor of the local newspaper and an eyewitness to Shewmaker's arrest. Details of his bust come from references in news reports and internal documents released through FOIA.

  "Is this all for me?" comes from an anonymous source.

  Details from the June 5, 1989, meeting of the task forces come from FOIA documents, including "as this term ... participants."

  CHAPTER IO

  "What's this press conference all about?" and other quotations throughout this section until "What's it have to do with me?" come from interviews with John Bramel.

  Details from the press conference come from the coverage provided by the Associated Press, UPI and the Courier Journal. Quotations from the Courier journal include:

  "What we are revealing today ...," "Each of these farms ...," "'Ihe organization ...," "'Ibis is the first ...," "'Ihe wholesale value ..." and "A major dent ... We intend to crush this organization."

  "Wait a minute ...," "And wait..." and "Well, no" come from an interview with John Bramel, as do the details of his drive home.

  "'Ihe DEA framed..." comes from an interview with Al Cross.

  The arrival of the Action News vans is remembered by many people in Marion County. "Loretto, Kentucky ... nobody knows a thing" was remembered by an anonymous source.

  "What makes you think ..." comes from an interview with John Bramel, as does "When are you gonna... arrested!"

  Details about the coverage of the Cornbread Mafia in the Sydney Morning Herald come from interviews with Sandra Gwinn, including, "They didn't ... polenta."

  "I wonder where ... that name" comes from an interview with Johnny Boone; "this term ... participants" comes from an FBI memo. "We were all sitting ... wild goose chase" comes from an interview with James "Jim Bean" Cecil.

  CHAPTER

  Information about the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, comes from interviews with Johnny Boone, Mr. Nice by Howard Marks and a pamphlet about the prison history sent to me by request from the public library in Terre Haute.'Ihere are very few sources about life inside Terre Haute penitentiary because, due to "Son of Sam"laws, no convicted felon can profit from the sale of a memoir, so first-person accounts from inside the prison are quite rare. For instance, Howard Marks's memoir, Mr. Nice, is not available for sale in America for that reason. I had to get my copy off eBay from a seller in the United Kingdom.

  "Welcome to the gladiator arena" comes from an interview with Johnny Boone. Quotations from Howard Marks come from his memoir, Mr. Nice. Lists of types of prisoners inside of Terre Haute come from interviews with Johnny Boone and Mr. Nice.

  'Ihe story of the friendship between Johnny Boone and Joe Testa, including "If you want it that bad ...," comes from interviews with Johnny Boone. Background information on Joseph Testa and his role in Brooklyn's "Murder Machine" as half of the so-called Gemini Twins, named after the Gemini Club in Bushwick, Brooklyn, where two hundred mob associates were allegedly murdered in the back room, comes from Murder Machine by Gene Mustain and Jerry Capeci.

  'Ihe background on omertk comes from a number of sources, but a good one is an essay entitled "'Ihe Maffia [sic] and Omerta" by Richard Bagot in the February 1901 issue of the National Review, a conservative publication:

  One of the most vigorous races, and one of the fairest spots in Europe, has lain for several centuries under the spell of a power as blighting in its influence on all social, moral, and economic development as it is mysterious both in its origin and in its action....

  The struggle for self-defence [sic], the hatred and contempt for foreign rule, has produced in the Sicilian nature an unwritten code of honour [sic] which, although supremely egoistic in its origin, nevertheless can be, and very often is, the instigator of unselfish and even chivalrous deeds, and these, notwithstanding the savagery by which they are too often marred, compel an unwilling admiration.

  It is this unwritten code of honour which constitutes the Sicilian Omerta ...

  The story of a nineteen-year-old Marion County man who lied to police about being stabbed in the back comes from a short crime notice in the Courier Journal from late December 1981.

  Boone's association with Howard Marks at Terre Haute comes from interviews with Johnny Boone, including "In there ... crazy."'Ihe background on Marks comes from his autobiography, Mr. Nice, which is not available on American bookshelves because of Son of Sam laws, including: "Terre Haute ... gymnasium" and "the hacks ... the prison."

  The story of Boone refusing journalists' requests for interviews comes from interviews with Johnny Boone, as do details about UNICOR-made shivs, the cafeteria murder of Roosevelt Daniels and the blood sport made out of child molesters at Terre Haute. The story of Johnny Boone and Bobby Joe Shewmaker in Las Vegas comes from an interview with Johnny Boone, including, "a limousine, a big one ... else right now."

  The story of Boone and Shewmaker talking through the windows at Terre Haute during Shewmaker's transfer through there comes from an interview with Johnny Boone, including, "Well ... to do."

  The shift to the Bickett brothers' court case comes from reviewing motion filings and transcripts of their trial and subsequent hearings, including the window provided into the holding cells at the Bullitt Countyjail provided by the testimony of assistant jailer Danny Joe Maraman and inmate Robert Lamb, including, "'That's not..." and "You may..."

  Courtroom quotes from the Bickett trial come from court transcripts, including "What I intend ... monitors" to "Yeah ... any horse."

  As to allegations that the DEA altered the tape used to incriminate Joe Keith Bickett, DEA Agent Richard Badaracco declined repeated attempts to be interviewed for this book, so add this to the bin labeled "Things We'll Never Know."

  Details about prison transfers to Manchester come from interviews with Johnny Boone. Quotations from the September 10, 1991, ruling of Joe Keith Bickett's appeals come from his court case file.

  The story of the 1995 death of the Bicketts' sister, Patricia, and her husband comes from news reports and interviews with Charlie Bickett.

  Stories of Johnny Boone and Jimmy Bickett in prison come from interviews with Boone and Bickett, including the tense weight-room showdown with Money and his crew and Jimmy Bickett trash-talking during bocce games. "Spaghetti-eatin' motherfuckers" and "Why do you call ... Is that all?" come from an interview with Jimmy Bickett.

  Details about Charlie Bickett working at the prison and Cliff Todd bribing public officials and going to prison himself come from interviews with Bickett and Cliff Todd.

  The details and narrative of the bust of Jeff Boone and his wife on the Boone farm come from the police report, released through a KORA open records request.

  The fact that Jeff Boone escaped the Minnesota bust by hiding in a hay bale for three days comes from an anonymous source.

  Judge George's ruling to throw out the search warrant was also included in the state police file returned through a KORA request, as remembered in an interview with Jacky Hunt.

  Joe Keith Bickett mailed me a copy of the June 25, 2007, ruling on his final appeal, including "Upon review ... DENIED."

  I attended the memorial service for Steve Lowery and witnessed Al Cross's eulogy.

  CHAPTER 12

  Details and statistics about Ham Days from 1981 and 1989 come from the Enterprise.

  I got the tip that Bobby Joe Shewmaker's lions were at the Houston Zoo from the chief zookeeper at the Topeka Zoo. The notion that Chico ended up in a Spielberg movie comes from a half-forgotten memory of Jimmy Bickett.

  The story of Jimmy Bickett and Charlie Bickett playing chicken in 2007 comes from an interview with Johnny Boone.

  The sce
ne between me and Boone in my apartment from February 12, 2008, is built from Obama's quotations, which I pulled from a transcript of the events. The quotations between Boone and me are from memory, including "There probably ... D.C." to ".. . second term."

  Charlie Bickett's quotation that he knows it "sounds crazy" that he's going to vote for "that [n-word]" comes from my hearing it on more than one occasion.

  "Orphans get killed" was said to me by my agent at the time, Richard Abate, then at Endeavor, now at 3Arts.

  "Naw ... job" comes from memory.

  I witnessed Charlie Bickett writing his bets with a Sharpie on the side of his refrigerator, and I regret not taking a photo of it. When I returned home in 2009 after living in New York City for a year, Bickett had replaced it.

  Obama's election return numbers come from precinct-by-precinct reporting from the Lebanon Enterprise.

  Details about the bust on Boone's farm in late May 2008 come from the reporting in the Springfield Sun, including over $5 million" to It started with ... at $340,000."

  Due to the fact that the case remains open at the time of this book's deadline, no open records request was responded to, and the law enforcement officers involved in the case, including the DEA, the US Attorney's Office in Louisville and the US Marshals Service in Louisville and its headquarters in D.C., all declined comment.

  The story about law enforcement almost catching Johnny Boone at his son's grave in St. Dominic Cemetery comes from an anonymous source.

  My interview with Rick McCubbin, retired US marshal, took place in his new office in the Bardstown Police Department.

  "I didn't ... don't care" comes from movie The Fugitive, 1993.

  "Oh, I know ... in the trunk" comes from Paul Miles, an eyewitness in the car.

  My interview with Charles "FedEx Chuck" Price took place in Lebanon while Price was making his rounds.

  The quotations about the bearded man with the gun outside Boone's daughter's wedding come from the bearded man himself, but because he told me that story without knowing who I was or that I was writing a book, I decided to not include his name here.

  Quotations from Justin Lenart, producer at America's Most Wanted, come from his posting on Vimeo. Despite repeated attempts, he would not speak to me about his work on the Boone segment, though he claimed to be "very proud" of it. Vimeo later removed Lenart's post after I complained that the AMW video violated my copyright by using photos of Johnny Boone without permission.

  Quotations from my conversation with Rick McCubbin come from memory and were confirmed by my interview with him, including "Even if I knew ... an investigation."

  Quotations from my conversation with the Brooklyn-based marshal, including "Hello?" to "... federal fugitive," come from memory.

  The Joe Gerth story comes from the Courier-journal; my conversations with Jack Smith come from memory, including, "I got ..." to "... retained counsel," "I haven't witnessed ..." to "... feel that way" and "But, Jack ..." to "'That's right."

  Quotations from my nephew Dawson come from memory.

  I witnessed the exchange between Jack Smith and a US marshal posted at the metal detector.

  Quotes from my conversation with AUSA John Kuhn are from memory; Kuhn would not speak to me about an open case.

  Details about the evening of February 13-14,2009, when Deputy Jimmy Habib shot an innocent pregnant woman, come from documents filed with the US District Court.

  I specifically asked the D.C. office of the US Marshals Service if there had been an internal investigation into Deputy Jimmy Habib shooting an innocent pregnant woman in the back and received no response.

  In addition to Justin Lenart ofAMWnot responding to a request for comment, neither did AMW correspondent Angeline Hartmann. The transcript of Hartmann and Habib alleging that Johnny Boone was responsible for the suicides of Jeffrey Boone and Rosa Goff comes from watching the video on YouTube, posted by the Arizona-based production company contracted for the job before I had it removed for violating my copyright.

  My interview with Jacky Hunt was conducted in his office at the Simpson County Sheriff's Department, where he now works. Details surrounding the events of the death of Rosa Goff come from the police report on file at the Washington County Sheriff's Office in Springfield.

  Quotations from Johnny Boone regarding the US Marshals come from interviews I conducted with him before he became a fugitive, so readers can discard any notion that I am still in touch with him. Because I'm not.

  This is to all my writing teachers, without whom this book would have been impossible: Suzie Smith and Lynn D. Farris from Marion County High School; Anne Shelby and John Maruskin at Governor's School for the Arts; George Ella Lyon, Tan Lin and Milton Reigelman at Centre College; Forrest Gander, C. D. Wright, Meredith Steinbach, Bob Arellano and the Peter Kaplan family at Brown University; Sandy Padwe, Sree Sreenivasan and Sam Freedman at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and my peers along the way. Thanks, y'all.

  To my parents, Jane and Jimmy Higdon, I owe a great deal. They have put up with quite a bit as I assembled this book, and now they are likely to deal with its consequences. Sorry about that.

  Additionally, I'd like to thank George Spragens, Cliff Todd and Curtice Taylor for their support during the reporting phase of this book.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  JAMES HIGDON studied English and art at Centre College, writing at Brown University and journalism at Columbia University, where he graduated with honors in 2005. He has worked for the Courier journal in Louisville and the New York Times, contributed material to The Prairie Home Companion and researched the New York Police Department counterterrorism and intelligence divisions. He is currently an editor at PBS Frontline's Tehran Bureau. His reporting relationship with Johnny Boone landed him in the crosshairs of a federal manhunt, making him the first journalist subpoenaed under the Obama administration. He lives in Lebanon, Kentucky, and Brooklyn, New York.

  Otis Redding (right) with Obie Slater (left), manager of the Club Cherry and the Club 68 in Lebanon, Kentucky. The photo was taken approximately in 1964 inside the Club Cherry, a regular stop on the Chitlin' Circuit and a primary cause for the Courier-Journal to label Lebanon as the "Ft. Lauderdale of central Kentucky." Note the "Ladies" sign above the restroom in the background; that's the men's room. PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF OBIE SLATER

  Photo of Charlie Stiles, the top Marion County outlaw from the generation between Prohibition and marijuana. Stiles was killed by the Kentucky State Police in 1971; his death marks the unofficial beginning of the Cornbread Mafia. This photo comes from Stiles's KSP police file, which was saved by reporter Al Cross. AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  Unofficial wedding photo of Charlie Bickett (center, with revolver). The others in the front row are all Bickett brothers: Jimmy (far left); Louis Earl (left center); and Joe Keith (to the right of Charlie). Those in the back row-Steve Leake, wearing the hat on the right, and Keith Riney, in the center-do not appear as characters in this story, but Cooch Allen (back row left, holding the whisky bottle) was a contemporary of Charlie Stiles and father of Tank Allen, who was arrested with Joe Keith in February 1989. Johnny Boone and Elmer George were supposed to be in the photo, according to Charlie Bickett, but they were running late. PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF CHARLIE BICKETT

  One of Charlie Bickett's creations, which he sold at Squire's Tavern in Raywick. It was the second year for the hat, as the CourierJournal reported in October 1981 that one could buy hats at Squire's Tavern that read: MARION COUNTY HOMEGROWN-THE BEST-1981. This 1982 edition of the hat was from the collection of Mike Bandy, former Kentucky state trooper, who participated in the arrests of Charlie's brothers, Jimmy and Joe Keith, in February 1989. PHOTOGRAPH © JAMES HIGDON

  J. E. "Squire" Bickett, patriarch of the Bickett family, seen here speculating for oil. Bickett ran Squire's Tavern in Raywick, where he played practical jokes on patrons by stabbing himself in his artificial leg, which he lost in a motorcycle accident. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTH
OR'S COLLECTION

  Beginning in 1980, the Kentucky State Police began cracking down on the large-scale pot growers of Marion County with the regular use of helicopters. In this shot, the helicopter pilot ascended and descended into a cornfield laced with marijuana plants to ensure the photographer for the Lebanon Enterprise got a good shot, according to Steve Lowery. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  Two police officers walk the cornfield, identifying where the pot plants are hiding amid the rows of corn. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  Merrill Mattingly, of the Marion County Sheriff Department, packs an arm-load of cut pot plants out of the cornfield behind him. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  In the early busts conducted between 1980 and 1983, police were finding pot patches grown by the acre. In one weekend in 1980, police found fortyfive acres in Marion County alone. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  The police employed state highway mowing crews to bush-hog entire cornfields where marijuana was found. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  When police found pot patches hidden in the woods, officers had to chop the plants down by hand and carry them out to a burn site or load them onto a truck. PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION

  Once a pot field was discovered in Marion County, police would either burn it on-site or haul it off in trucks to a burn site for the television cameras. One grower compared watching the marijuana burn on TV to another unstoppable tragedy: It was like watching someone fall out a window." PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEVE LOWERY, AUTHOR'S COLLECTION