James White (gangster)
Slobbery Jim | |
|---|---|
 The Old Brewery in the Five Points, circa 1850; no authenticated portrait of White is known | |
| Born | James White c. 1839 |
| Disappeared | June 1859 |
| Other name | Slobbery Jim |
| Occupation | Gang leader |
Criminal status | Fled after the June 1859 killing; later fate unknown |
| Allegiance | Daybreak Boys |
Criminal charge | Homicide allegation |
James White, better known as Slobbery Jim (born c. 1839), was a leader of the Daybreak Boys, a waterfront gang active along New York's East River. He reportedly assumed leadership with Bill Lowrie after other leaders were arrested in 1852.[1]
White disappeared after the June 1859 stabbing death of Michael “Patsy the Barber” Dooley. Contemporary reporting said Dooley was fatally stabbed during a fight and that White escaped before he could be arrested.[2] Herbert Asbury later supplied a more dramatic version of the incident. Despite occasional grouping with Five Points figures, White was a Daybreak Boys leader, not a documented member of the Dead Rabbits.
References
- ↑ “Burglary and Murder of a Private Watchman,” New York Daily Times, August 26, 1852.
- ↑ “The Fourth Ward Case: Coroner's Inquest—Escape of the Murderer”, The New York Times, June 6, 1859.