Smashing the Rackets

This is the story of a gung-ho special prosecutor who rids the city of organized crime "rackets" of the gambling, protection, and (ahem) entertainment variety. Inspired by the real life exploits of Thomas E. Dewey.

Jim 'Socker' Conway (Chester Morris), former FBI agent and night school lawyer, becomes a special prosecutor with the D.A.'s office. Using a combination of trickery and disregard for search warrants he breaks a slot machine racket, a numbers racket, and finally brings down the kingpin, a lawyer who has been consolidating the protection rackets under his own leadership.  Conway also gets the girl (after her sister, a wayward lass, commits suicide by automobile).

Familiar face: Byron Foulger, who normally played some sort of clerk.  In this one he was a chemist producing a "nausea gas". He also played Wendell the train conductor on Petticoat Junction.

Byron Foulger