What Impact Does He Have on People Today

He is an infamous character in United States history, and likely the world.  Almost everyone has heard of him.
His life was so romanticized that he seemed to be not as bad as he was.  He only seemed bad to other gangs.  He was very nice to many people and he was the first to open the soup kitchens at his own expense, but was in fact a ruthless murderer and criminal.

How Did He Help or Hurt the People Around Him

Capone both helped and hurt people around him.  He helped people for selfish reasons so that they would look past his criminal activities.  For example, he opened soup kitchens and provided people with clothing and goods at his own expense in the wake of the Great Depression.  He truly wanted people to like him as long as they were on his good side.  He also had paid associates who were accused and/or tried for crimes that he requested they do.  Many members of his immediate family became involved in organized crime just as he had due to his influence.

Why Was He Significant to the World

Public Enemy Number One 
In 1930, at the peak of his power, Capone headed Chicago's new list of the twenty-eight worst criminals and became the city's "Public Enemy Number One."  He became FBI's most wanted by all the illicit activities in which he was involved, but was only ever convicted of non-violent crimes.
Capone in Alcatraz 
Because word spread that Capone had taken over in the federal prison in Atlanta, he was sent to Alcatraz. There were no other "outfit" members in Alcatraz, and security was so tight that he had no knowledge of the outside world. He was unable to control anyone or anything and could not buy influence or friends. In an attempt to earn time off for good behavior, Capone became the ideal prisoner and refused to participate in prisoner rebellions or strikes.
Capone's Sentence 
When Al Capone finally went to court, the jury found him not guilty on eighteen of the twenty-three counts against him. Judge Wilkerson sentenced him to a total of ten years in federal prison and one year in the county jail. In addition, Capone had to serve an earlier six-month contempt of court sentence for failing to appear in court. The fines were a cumulative $50,000 and Capone had to pay the prosecution costs of $7,692.29.

What Motivated His Actions

Greed motivated most of his actions.  His empire was extensive and his influence was felt throughout Chicago, and on a larger scale, the United States.  For the limited media that existed in his day, they helped his public persona be one that was aggrandized.  Once could only imagine if the media of today existed then if he would have succeeded as much as he did.

Accomplishments.

He was most noted for the St Valentines day Massacre.
He was also on the FBI's most wanted but they never had enough evidence to arrest him.
St. Valentines Day Massacre was against a rival gang, that of George "Bugs" Moran's Northside gang.  Moran's gang was nowhere near as successful as Capone's.  They met in a building that would not raise any suspicions. The building was the main liquor headquarters of Moran's gang. Capone's crew were dressed as police so the rival gang thought it was a police raid. As a result, they dropped their guns and put their hands against the wall. Using two shotguns and two machine guns, the Capone men fired more than 150 bullets into the victims.  The man accused of the murders was Jack McGurn, one of Capone's paid henchmen, but Capone was never indicted for it.

Personal Information/Facts

Al Capone came from a well educated family. Instead of having a reputable job, he went into a life of crime.
He never stayed in one place for too long.  He would go to hotels for a while and then move.
He never liked to do the dirty work, but on occasion he would.
After working his way up through a few 'kiddie' and teen gangs during school, Capone soon became a member of the Five Points Gang,  That gang was notorious for its violence.  This is where he met and joined such future associates as Johnny Torrio and Lucky Luciano.
Capone served as Johnny Torrio's underboss for several years.  When Torrio retired in 1925, the job was given to Al Capone.
Al Capone was arrested in 1926 for killing three people, but spent only one night in jail because there was insufficient evidence to connect him with the murders.
In 1931, Capone was indicted for income tax evasion for the years 1925-29. He was also charged with the misdemeanor of failing to file tax returns for the years 1928 and 1929. The government charged that Capone owed $215,080.48 in taxes from his gambling profits. A third indictment was added, charging Capone with conspiracy to violate Prohibition laws from 1922-31. Capone pleaded guilty to all three charges in the belief that he would be able to plea bargain. However, the judge who presided over the case, Judge James H. Wilkerson, would not make any deals. Capone changed his pleas to not guilty. Unable to bargain, he tried to bribe the jury but Wilkerson changed the jury panel at the last minute.  Capone never filed an income tax return, owned nothing in his own name, and never made a declaration of assets or income.
In May 1932, Capone was sent to Atlanta, the toughest of the federal prisons, to begin his eleven-year sentence. In prison Capone took control.  He got special privileges from the authorities such as putting a mirror, typewriter, rugs, and a set of the Encyclopedia Britannica in his cell.
While imprisoned at Alcatraz, Al Capone exhibited signs of dementia. He spent the rest of his felony sentence in the hospital. On January 6, 1939, his prison term expired and he was transferred to Terminal Island, a Federal Correctional Institution in California, to serve his one-year misdemeanor sentence. He was finally released on November 16, 1939, but still had to pay fines and court costs of $37,617.51.

Birth information

Born: January 17, 1899 in Brooklyn New York.
His parents were from Naples, Italy and emigrated to the United States not long before Alphonse was born.
Died: January 25, 1947 in Miami Florida.
Al Capone was first buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago's far South Side between the graves of his father, Gabriele, and brother, Frank, but in March of 1950 the remains of all three were moved to Mount Carmel Cemetery on the far West Side.

Full Name

His full name was Alphonse Capone. His close friends and family called him "Snorkey'.  To others his nickname was "Al" or "Scarface" because he had a scar from his left ear to his mouth.
"Scarface Al" got his nickname from the "ear to mouth" scar on his left cheek. That scar was given to him by Frank Gallucio.  Capone often romanticized the scar by pretending he'd received it as a member of the "Lost Battalion" in World War I.  The "Lost Battalion" fought in France under the command of Lt. Colonel. Charles W. Whittlesey. Capone did not fight in WWI (he was fifteen years old when the war broke out and nineteen when it ended).
Al Capone's men also had a special name for him.  His men referred to him as "The Big Fellow."  He stood almost six feet and weighed 250 lbs. so that name was well earned.