Justice and Judgment Quotes in Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, the FBI, and a Devil's Deal

During the '60s and '70s, the FBI makes taking down the Mafia their number one priority. RICO is a big part of that: It allows them to put pretty much any national-level crime boss in prison for a long time. That's a useful tool when you're up against such a finely-tuned and tight-knit criminal organization as La Cosa Nostra (another term for the Mafia).

Bulger is signed on as an informant to help bring the Mafia to justice, but he ends up sparking quite a bit of injustice himself. What's more, he reveals many FBI agents, like Connolly, Morris, and O'Sullivan, to be more concerned with good press than actually doing the right thing.

Connolly is so convinced that Bulger and Flemmi will help the FBI take down the Mafia that he's willing to do whatever it takes to keep them out of jail. Theft? No biggie. Racketeering? Chump change. Assault and murder? Not Connolly's problem. A real moral stalwart, right here.

Halloran is a prospective informant against Bulger who's murdered after Connolly leaks his identity to crime boss. Shady. By now, the rest of the FBI has no illusions: the deal with Bulger is causing more evil than it's stopping.

No matter how expertly they plan their raids, the DEA remains one step behind Bulger. This just confirms their suspicions: Connolly is definitely leaking intel to the gangster. That's got to be against the bro code. Even if they now know that Connolly is their enemy, however, they still don't know how to take him down.

John Morris has always had reservations about the deal with Bulger—though to be fair, those reservations weren't enough to stop him from accepting thousands of dollars in bribes. No matter the reason behind his sudden admission to the Boston Globe, however, it kicks off the chain of events that finally lands Whitey where he belongs: a jail cell.

Not to be cruel, but Flemmi's inability to realize that he's going to jail is hilarious. He's been let off the hook so many times that he can't process that he's finally being brought to justice for his crimes. Hey—they call him "The Rifleman," not "The Brainiac." There's a reason for that.

The Fifth Amendment, by the way, gives citizens the right to not incriminate themselves in court. After decades of cooking the books and bullying anybody who peeks too closely at his deal with Bulger, Connolly is finally getting his feet held to the fire. And poor wittle Connolly hates to have his toesies singed.

Wow—that means that Judge Wolf's ruling is almost as long as Moby Dick. Not exactly easy reading. Also, keep in mind that Bulger isn't even the defendant in this case: his informant kerfuffle is a mere sideshow. But no one can deny that it's one juicy piece of gossip.

To be honest, we doubted that Connolly would ever be brought to justice for his crimes. He's great at covering his tracks, and FBI agents are rarely seen on the other side of jailhouse bars. So good on you, Lady Justice: you mind be blind as a bat, but you're a crack shot.