'I Was Just Playing a Role'
Litigation attorney Daniel Small authored a Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly article examining the prosecution of Sam Cammarata, the "Godfather of Houston," which illustrates the complexities of using informants in organized crime cases. Mr. Small describes how Mr. Cammarata manipulated his roles as crime boss, respectable businessman and secret informant for both the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to expand his enterprise and later claim at trial that he was merely "playing a role" to aid the government. The article details the prosecution's strategy to expose his abuse of informant status, corroborate his leadership in the criminal organization and rebut the defense's narrative, resulting in convictions on all counts and a 45-year sentence.