The Butcher Read Online Free PDF Page B

chosen to be a professional fighter, and he had been moving in that direction. Jim liked the discipline and regimentation of boxing. He liked being the best at what he did, a quality that he would have for the rest of his life. This was an attribute that would make him one of the most successful and famous law enforcement individuals in the annals of American crime history.
    Gladly, Jim joined the army and went to war when World War II broke out. He had come to love America, the freedom and equality it readily afforded its citizens. He would gladly lay down his life for America. America’s enemies were Jim Hunt’s enemies.
    Inevitably, Jim began boxing in the army. He quickly rose up the ranks and became an army middleweight champion. This was no small feat given that there were nearly one and a half million men in the army—he had tremendous competition. To be a boxing champion in the United States Army back then immediately elevated the boxer to rock-star status, though star status and adulation did not at all interest Jim Hunt. He was a true sportsman, loved boxing, and was in it for the sport and competition. The army was filled with men who not only wanted to fight, but wanted to kill. When there were boxing matches, held in England before the invasion, it was always standing room only. Boxing was, by far, the most popular pastime for fighting men. The stringent competition only furthered Jim’s aspirations to box professionally, to make boxing his life’s calling. Jim knocked out most everyone he was pitted against.
    As it occurred, the reality of war, the reality of fighting an enemy asconsistently tough and resistant and belligerent as the Germans were, struck home during the Battle of the Bulge. This was close, hands-on fighting that took place over a period of some thirty-two days, mostly in the Ardennes forests between Belgium and France. These lush, thick, fertile forests were a terrible place to make war. The American forces were up against highly motivated, deeply entrenched German soldiers whose ferocious fighting acumen took a terrible toll on the American soldiers. There were some eighty thousand Americans killed, maimed, or captured during the campaign; nineteen thousand were confirmed dead. It was on this bloody stage, man killing man, that James Hunt was severely wounded. As he made his way across an open field, he was brought down by machine-gun fire. All around him, men lay dead and dying, their blood being quickly absorbed by the fertile soil. James looked up to the sky and cursed in anger. He didn’t want to go down like this, lying there injured, helpless, as his buddies continued toward the enemy. At first, there was no pain. The natural endorphins of the body kicked in. But soon a hot, angry pain bit into his legs and all James could do was grit his teeth and wait for help.
    After a long, torturous convalescence in hospitals both in Europe and stateside, James Hunt was confronted with a life-changing reality. Because of the injuries to his legs, his knees, he could no longer box, his doctors told him. This was a hard blow for a man who had been in superb physical condition all his life, who was endowed with the natural athleticism of an Olympian. Yes, with therapy he could walk all right, but running full out was impossible.
    With boxing no longer an option, Jim turned toward the only occupation that interested him—law enforcement. When he heard about a new federal agency whose job it was to stop the sale and use of illegal narcotics, his interest was piqued. He saw an opportunity to get in with a meaningful, well-funded federal agency and begin from the bottom up. He saw a way to contribute positively to society. Jim Hunt viewed drugs as the scourge of society. He knew women prostituted not only themselves but their children for drugs. He knew men robbed andstole and even murdered, without conscience or remorse, for drugs. The name of this new agency was the Federal