More than one consigliere

Are there any examples of this? A family with more than one consigliere? Seems like a position where you could easily have a kind of advisory panel. Or at least two guys. Just wondering if that has ever been known to happen.

the position itself is to solve disputes and [more traditionally] give advice. the westside doesnt have any one 'official' to hold that spot.they allow different guys to represent the administration.different guys mediate inner family disputes and beefs with other families.thats why you see guys being called 'acting boss' or 'panel' and what not.in essence its the same thing. it is very risky to represent the family you are in in a sit down.even the act of simple mediation is considered extortionate under the 'rico' statutes.

of coarse accepting a 'button' in this day and age is foolish.

I have reason to believe that in the 80's, the Pittsburgh Crew had at least two and maybe three Consiglieres. Keep in mind that at that time they were pretty spread out and they realized the effects of RICO.

A good question. You would think a panel would make more sense. But gamms makes a good point as well.

Yes, Chicago Outfit. Ricca & Accardo. DiFronzo & Lombardo (before they completely retreated). Consigliere plays a different role in Chicago. They are semi-retired Bosses who stay behind the scenes. They are not relegated to being dispute settlers. Main function is to guide acting Boss.

IMO, this is an important post when talking about the position of consigliere. Everything I've read indicates that the function of consigliere was different in Chicago. At different times the consigliere was more involved than other times, depending on the era. Again, IMO, this is one of the major reasons The Outfit was so successful; a lot of input and discussion relative to important decisions. The active boss could make the decision, but generally there seemed to be a lot of discussion beforehand.

OC writers / authors generally refer to Ricca and Accardo as two of the best consigliere s.
Both were very smart, shrewd, conniving, treacherous and powerful.

Just a couple of additional points from what I've read:

- Accardo never aspired to the position of active boss. He apparently was the defacto boss at different times, but he always denied it (surprise, surprise). But he also denied it privately. He maintained that Paul Ricca was in charge.

- Accardo's wife and family wanted him to retire in the mid 50's. Ricca wanted him to stay. A lot of govt. scrutiny was causing problems for Ricca, Accardo and later, Giancana.

- There was a lack of capable leaders after Ricca, Accardo and Giancana. Aiuppa was one of the last old-time, hardcore bosses. Aiuppa was a really mean old man. He would kill anybody for just about any reason. He would also kill your pets and probably the grass on your lawn ( a little exaggeration here ).

the difference is in Chicago the boss was the consigliere

they had the same hierarchy as NY

it's just in Chicago the positions meant something different

That's what OC / Outfit authorities say. The consigliere position in Chicago was not the same as other cities.