Michael P. Mahoney

Michael P. Mahoney
Mahoney booking photo from 1914
Born(1842-03-17)March 17, 1842
York, Ireland
DiedApril 10, 1925(1925-04-10) (aged 83)
New York City
Criminal statusIncarcerated and died in prison
Criminal chargeAssassination attempt of Mayor John Purroy Mitchel

Michael P. Mahoney (March 17, 1842 – April 10, 1925) attempted to assassinate Mayor John Purroy Mitchel of New York City on April 17, 1914.[1][2]

Biography

He was born March 17, 1842, in York, Ireland. He migrated to the United States in 1865, at the age of 23. He lived in Cincinnati and by 1914 had migrated to New York City.[3]

At 1:30 pm on April 17, 1914, the 71-year-old Mahoney fired his gun at Mitchel as he entered his car to go to lunch. The bullet ricocheted off a pedestrian and hit Frank Lyon Polk, New York City's corporation counsel in the chin.[1][2]

Mitchel had been armed with a handgun.[2] His predecessor, Mayor William Jay Gaynor, had been shot by a disgruntled former city employee in 1910.[4]

In 1914, Mahoney was incarcerated in the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.

References

  1. ^ a b "Identified as Michael P. Mahoney, Man with Many Grievances". The New York Times. 17 April 1914. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
  2. ^ a b c Roberts, Sam (29 April 2013). "100 Years Ago, Mayor Had a Ready Trigger Finger". New York Times. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
  3. ^ Reis, Jim (1994). "Michael P. Mahoney". Pieces of the Past. Vol. 3. pp. 83–85. Retrieved 25 December 2013. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  4. ^ "Story of Shooting told by Witnesses. Mayor's Official Family Relate What They Did to Aid Their Stricken Chief" (PDF). The New York Times. 10 August 1910. Retrieved 14 June 2007.