“In my younger days, I fractured an occasional law.”
Axel Foley “Beverly Hills Cop II” (1987)
I make no claims to underworld connections. My father and his stepfather I cannot be so certain of. More on them later. I also won’t bother trying to claim my total compliance with the law; although I will say that ‘petty’ is a fitting adjective for my life of crime.
Like most working-class people, I have always been acquainted, and often friends with people who live further across the line of legality. Being a pisshead, you also meet a host of colourful characters in pubs and clubs. God only knows how many of the tales were true, exaggerated, borrowed or straight up bullshit, but they were fascinating all the same.
This will be a collection of anecdotes, stories (personal, witnessed or heard) and general musings on the antics and motivations of people who bend, break or flout the law. Given that these yarns come from miscreants, validity is always dubious.
“Never let the truth get in the way of a good story”
All outlaws were young once, and their exploits in the grey area might have been mere larrikinism at one point. Be they juvenile delinquents, young thugs trying to prove how tough they are, rebellious thrill seekers, people trying to get their hands on stuff they can’t afford, or any other manner of misbehaviour.
The line from young punk to career criminal is paper-thin. Some cross it out of necessity or loyalty; others by accident or stupidity. Greed, pride, machismo, or any other follies of youth. Some had no intentions of getting square. Many others planned on getting out when they ‘grew up’, and many did. Some didn’t. The recklessness just couldn’t be tamed and/or the daily grind was worse than prison.
Growing up among rebellious young men, bad decisions were often seen as a way to prove your manhood. An act of bravado can be viewed as daring or dumb based purely on the outcome. One, or more likely, many foolhardy antics have led to injury, addiction, prison or death for many a young daredevil.
“There but for the grace of god go I”.
*Names and places will be changed for obvious reasons*
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