In Memory of Retired Chief Deputy US Marshal Nicholas L. Vinci

This post is a tribute to Nicholas L. Vinci.

Nick was the Chief Deputy US Marshal who hired me as a summer intern with the US Marshals Service in the summer of 1970.  He was easy, pleasant and had a "sparkle" in his eyes.  He hired me on the spot after finding out I went to West Catholic Girls' High School.  I was between my junior and senior years.

I worked for him for those three months, and he must have thought I did a pretty good job.  When I graduated from West the following June, there was no vacancy there, so I pestered him continually to call me if a vacancy became available.  At the time I worked at the US Navy Recruiting Station in Philadelphia.

Finally after continued pestering, finally he called me to offer me a job at the rate of GS-4.  I was a GS-3 at the Navy.  I'd worked there for nine months when he called.  I gave my two week notice to my sour old boss that very day.  She was not pleased.  But I digress.

I returned to the Marshals Service full time in March, 1972.  And there I remained, working for him doing civil work and as receptionist in the front office.  He took good care of me, rewarding my dedication and good work with promotions and some perks, minimal as they were at the time.  

During that time, in about 1977,  I ran into George Miller, a docket clerk in the Clerk's Office.  He overheard me in the hallway talking about my father, who was in the Imhof Thunderbirds Drum and Bugle Corps.  He waited and asked me if I knew about drum corps.  I told him about my father's love for the activity, and how he missed it.  George told me that the Archer Epler Musketeers had reformed their senior corps, at their American Legion Post in Upper Darby.  George told me he'd marched with the Reading Buccaneers and was very interested, still, in the activity.

That night I went home and told my parents about Archie reforming their corps.  The very next Friday night, Dad went to the Post and rejoined.  He remained at Archer Epler, playing bugle, singing in their chorus, and then a member of their Honor Guard.  Those were some of the happiest days of his life.  My parent persuaded me to come to the Post one Friday night.  When I did, they introduced me to my future husband.  My youngest brother then joined, and met his future wife.

A few years later, my husband and I were looking to buy a home in Hatboro, PA.  Our house in Philly was for sale, and the guy who bought it disappeared.  Then, with the settlement date approaching quickly, we were crestfallen as we realized we could never make the payment for the new house without the proceeds from the old one.  We were short $5,000.

I was so upset, and when I went to work the next day, Nick picked up on it immediately.  He pressed me for the reason, and it all came spilling out.  Our dream house was going to fall through our fingers because we couldn't make the settlement costs.  He asked how much we needed, and I told him, also saying how impossible the whole thing was.  He said, go back to work and don't worry about it.

Yes, easy for Nick to say.  The next day, he called me into his office, told me to close the door, and swore me to secrecy.  I couldn't imagine what was coming.  He handed me a small paper bag.  Inside it was $6,000 cash.  He told me to use what we needed, and give it back to him when we could.  He insisted.  I took it.  A few months later, I gave it back to him, in the same paper bag.  

We made settlement on our house.  And have lived here ever since.

So there it is.  This man, Nicholas L. Vinci, Navy Veteran, Deputy US Marshal, present at the riots in Mississippi, Chief Deputy US Marshal, worker at Spectacor at the Vet for the Phillies, runner for a few lawyers after his retirements.  Driving cross legged in his Buick Riviera.  Going to MCC New York with him with a woman in the back who was coming off a heroin high, trying to kick him, was fighting, screaming and barfing as I sat on my knees in the front seat of the car, fighting her and trying to keep her from opening the door while we were moving on the NJ Turnpike at about 90 mph...

The man was a living legend.

We had a chance to reconnect recently.  His memory was sharp as a tack.  He remembered things I forgot.  We laughed, reminisced and promised to keep in touch.  I told Nick how much he meant to me, how much meeting him influenced my life, and lastly, told him I loved him.

Nick passed away yesterday.  I'm so glad I got to reconnect.  Thank you, Nick.  For everything. 

Goodbye, Nick.  I will miss you, and am sure you are together now with Bridget and your sons.  

Where Has COMMON SENSE Gone???

 OK as usual... if you are easily offended...  PASS THIS ON BY because you WILL get pissed off especially if you are a left winger.

Normally, in the old days when there was common sense... what you did in the privacy of your own home was YOUR BUSINESS.  

Today, some idiot school district called the police (NOT the parents) to report that a 12 year old that was in his OWN HOME had a TOY GUN.  Really?  Ok in our day the TOY gun would have been confiscated.  Today, a child got arrested.  For having a TOY gun.  AT HIS OWN HOUSE.  Really????  Ok maybe he shouldn't have been fooling with it during "school" hours... but that hasn't been made clear yet.  Someone SAW it.  A TOY gun.  IDIOCY.  And outrageous that the school didn't do the NORMAL thing and call the PARENTS first.  

And on to the next case...  Let's use a little imagery here.

Imagery #1

You have a daughter.  She is your pride and joy, the apple of your eye.  She comes into the house, her nose bleeding, crying, and tells you one of the neighborhood bullies hit her and knocked her down.  You are incensed, so you call the mother of the other kid.  The other kid's mother absolutely refuses to believe that her little sweet boy said he didn't do it, and HE never lies.  Yeah right.  

So you patch up your daughter, tell her that some people are just not nice, and tell her that doing what that little boy did to her is not only NOT NICE but totally wrong.  

The next day, the boy who hit your little girl is being put up as the neighborhood hero, even though you have insisted the boy is a bully.  He's been a bully before and gotten away with it.  One time, one of the kids he bullied kicked the hell out of him and the bully's parents screamed bloody murder.  But no, the bully's the hero now, for whatever reason.  YOU want to beat the shit out of the bully AND the parents.

That week, the high school football team are wearing the bully's name on their jerseys.  You shake your head in disbelief.

Imagery #2

Your kid, your precious daughter, has been RAPED.  She has been assaulted and put through the worst thing a woman can undergo.  She frantically calls the police.  They come to your house.  While they are trying to arrest the no good thug animal bastard piece of shit, he resists.  They try to taze him, and fail.

This is YOUR DAUGHTER.  You would give your own life to protect her from ANY harm.  Let alone a vicious assault and rape.  YOUR DAUGHTER.

The piece of shit resists and is shot seven times.  I don't want to hear anything about how the cops coulda woulda shoulda.  This is YOUR DAUGHTER.  Do you really want the cops to use restraint and say Oh, Bad Boy, come with us, poor baby....

NO.  You would probably want a piece of his criminal ass yourself.  You might have shot him way more than seven times.  He hurt your little girl and you want him punished.  This is YOUR LITTLE GIRL.  

So now, the piece of shit is paralyzed.  He will not be raping anyone else any time soon.  He should be rotting in jail anyway, shouldn't he?  HE RAPED YOUR LITTLE GIRL.

No, he's now made the victim.  The victim instead of the perp.  Instead of the no good criminal piece of shit that he is.  He's a hero.  Imagine your disgust and HURT when you see a so-called "professional" sports personality wear HIS name on his uniform.  Not the name of the REAL victim, who is YOUR LITTLE GIRL.  He's being made a saint, the cops vilified, and your daughter, your precious little girl, is left seeing her rapist being made a hero.

Not only that, this criminal thug bastard piece of shit is not only being lauded by sports teams, the candidate for vice president is "proud of him".  Really, you stupid, cruel, idiotic BITCH?  Whatever happened to #metoo?  I guess none of those women's stories matter to you now.  You'd rather praise and laud a CRIMINAL BASTARD.

Hello... calling common sense.....  HELLO???? Common Sense??? Where have you gone?

Offended?  TOUGH SHIT and I don't want to debate or hear your comments.  

Retirement

There was a time my job was almost my total identity. It was such a part of me for 37 years. Twelve years ago today I walked away from it. Went to some awesome places (Tampa, Anchorage, San Diego, San Francisco, Providence) to learn, teach, or set up and work fugitive operations. There were some not so nice places, too (mostly jails!). Met some awesome people (too many to name). I'm proud of my service and miss my work.

This was a job that turned into an adventure. I walked into a State Unemployment office in the spring of 1970 to apply for a summer job, with a friend who'd talked me into it. She got a job at the Custom House for the summer. I was to report to the Navy Yard. I wasn't the least bit serious about a job, let alone a career, at the time. I was a junior in high school, 16 years old.

Got to the Navy Yard and was informed that my job was given away. But I had working papers and a written "promise of employment" so I trekked back to the State office and asked where I should report for the job I'd been promised. The woman thumbed through a box full of 3x5 index cards. Yes there were NO computers, not so much as an electric typewriter. She pulled out a card, asked if I'd mind going uptown (center city) for the job. I said it was ok. Still not enthused, wondering if this whole thing was for real.

Got to 9th and Market, 3rd floor (US Courthouse). Wondered what could I possibly be doing here!
Get to office, met by a woman, their admin boss, Grace McGill. She led me to the office of the Chief Deputy US Marshal. Now I'm really wondering where I am... The Chief, Nick Vinci, takes one look at me in my hot pink blouse, and black pleated miniskirt... asks if I can type and take shorthand. Well, I'd had one year of typing and shorthand, so I said yes. He asked where I went to school. I said West Catholic Girls. He said, "You're hired. You start Monday morning, 8:30." I was floating on air!

The following Monday I walk in, Grace shows me to my desk, in a back room next to a small kitchen. She asks a few questions which I answer, she disappears. I'm sitting there in front of a manual Royal typewriter and an adding machine. She comes back from a vault with a box and drops it on my desk, along with a huge pile of paper, and a box of envelopes. She then says, Type addresses on the envelopes, one for every one of these vouchers. (There were at least 300 vouchers.) Then she opens the box, which contains 500 blank Government checks, with 2 carbon copies attached. She says, compute what the voucher totals, take one of these checks and type it with the amount written out, then the person's name. Then total the checks and the vouchers, and they must balance by the classes of expenses on the voucher. They must add up exactly. Then bring the checks, vouchers, and adding machine tape showing they balance to me. Oh and by the way, when typing the checks, you CAN'T MAKE A MISTAKE or you have to void the check, and we don't want to void checks. Yikes. NO pressure!

I was busy. I presented the checks, vouchers, envelopes and adding machine tape to Grace. She looked at it, checked them, sees that I only voided one check. She said, this is good work. I'll be right with you, go ahead back to your desk. I leave. She has the Marshal (a florist!) sign the checks, brings them back, tells me to put them in the envelopes and mail them. Along with these, she also brings another pile of 300 vouchers. (They were for paying jurors, nobody had done the job for at least 5 months.)

In the meantime, I'm seeing guys walk by my desk, they're all cordial and very nice, but they're also all wearing handcuffs on their belts, and were carrying guns. I have NO idea what kind of place I've gotten myself into. Finally, one guy - Jack Smith, "Smitty", stops and tells me, "Hi kid. Do you work here now?" I say yes, he says, "OK kid. Just one thing. You don't have to be crazy to work here, but it helps."

That's how it went from June 22, 1970 (the day after my 17th birthday) until right before I went back to school for my senior year. The last day, Smitty comes and says, come on, we have to take a ride. I say, OK, does Grace know, he says yes. I go with him, and he tells me, "OK kid, no matter what happens, don't look scared. You can BE scared, just don't look it." So now I'm scared. HA! We pull into the Philadelphia House of Corrections. He goes in and comes out with a female, who is wearing the handcuffs. He puts her in the back seat of the car, and we drive back to the office. (I was petrified.)

Thus started my career, starting after a nine month stint with the Navy Recruiting office. Then upon going back to the Marshals, it progressed to many trips, assignments, cities, supervisors, task forces, and different jobs in the office, but I loved it. The last year and a half, not so much, but I loved it. I miss the work, I do not miss the commute. I miss most of the people, not all. Lots of them are gone now to a better place.

There's so much more to this narrative. I began writing a book about it, as I've been told I should. It will take some time, and some names have to be changed to protect the guilty.

Thirty seven years. I walked out on July 3, 2008. Retired exactly two weeks after my 55th birthday. I get up and go to bed when I want, I go where I want when I want, and though lots of people tell me I was too young to retire, I know they're just jealous. I was blessed. I was lucky. And I thank God for every minute, especially the good which vastly outnumbered the bad.

Stay tuned, the book will be out, (someday).