chief witness against him was bludgeoned to death. Differing accounts of the murder of Fancher exist. By 1925, rival gang boss Spike O'Donnell had reinforced his gang and once again instigated a war with the Saltis-McErlane mob, who also found themselves in conflict with the Sheldon Gang as well. That summer, all the major South Side gang began shooting each other. Frank McErlane was a prime suspect in the July 23 murder of George Karl and the September 3 killing of William Dickman. McErlane was not charged; indeed, he was about to make history. Some crime historians believe McErlane acquired his "Tommy Gun" from North Side gang leader Dean O'Banion, who had purchased a shipment of submachine guns in Denver, Colorado shortly before his November 1924 murder. At any rate, McErlane was to use one in his next attempt to kill Spike O'Donnell (one of ten recorded attacks on O'Donnell's life). On September 25, 1925, O'Donnell was talking to a beat cop in front of a drugstore at Sixty-Third and Western streets. A car pulled up and someone yelled, "Hello, Spike!" The gang boss saw what was coming and hit the deck; a submachine gun began drumming from the car, stitching neat lines of bullet holes on the storefront before the would-be killers sped away. Police were so unfamiliar with the Thompson, they thought that either shotguns or a "machine rifle of some kind" had done the damage. It was the first recorded use of a submachine gun in Chicago (or any other major American city, for that matter). Several days later, on October 3, McErlane used his Thompson to shoot up the Ragen's Colts clubhouse, killing a Sheldon gangster named Charles Kelly. He was also suspected of shooting up Martin "Buff" Costello's bar on February 10, 1926, wounding Sheldon gangsters William Wilson and John "Mitters" Foley. Newspaper headlines read "MACHINE GUN GANG SHOOTS 2". Both Chicago Police Captain John Stege and gangster Al Capone commented on the power of the submachine gun; both of their respective organizations set out to arm themselves with the formidable weapon. The age of the Tommy Gun had arrived. On April 22, 1926, McErlane was finally arrested for the murder of Thaddeus Fancher. He wouldn't be extradited to Indiana until August of that year. McErlane was noted for showing up for one court appearance drunk; the jailer leading him was equally intoxicated. On November