A young boy destined for a life of crime sits quietly alongside his mother in a small country church. Although his mother tried to impress upon him the importance of a godly life, the preacher's words were not penetrating into his young mind. A young boy about the same age was bored as well, trying to get the attention of young James, would poke and yank his hair. James turned around to confront the other boy, but his mother wasn't having it. After church, there was a commotion in the church yard. As James's mother stepped outside, there was her sweet young son holding a small pocket knife that he had picked up somewhere along the way, and the other boy was rolling around on the ground, crying in pain. Similar to a schoolyard scuffle except for the knife, of course. The other boy was fine, but James was not so much.

James grew up in a poor family. He was high-strung and hot-tempered, and he was determined not to stay that way. As a young man, he looked at various ways to make money. He found there was big money in liquor, whiskey, and preferably moonshine. This path of crime took him, unintentionally, and eventually his family down some dangerous roads. With connections to the mafia, this would not end well.