Hanley graduated from St. Phillip's High School in Chicago in 1949 and served in the United States Air Force in the Korean War.
In 1977, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) said HERE was a classic example of organized crime's control over a major labor union.
DOJ also alleged that Hanley's election as president of the union was assisted by Chicago crime boss Joey Aiuppa.
In the late 1980s, Hanley hired John Wilhelm, an organizer and future president of the international union.
Hanley also sought to merge a number of HERE's affiliates into multi-employer locals to match the changes occurring in the hotel and restaurant industries as they came to be dominated by large, corporate-owned chains.
Among the many notable individuals who Hanley counted among his friends were House Ways and Means Committee chairman Dan Rostenkowski, the Rev.
They pointed to Hanley's lavish way of life, the union-owned $2.5 million jet maintained solely for his use, and the union office near his vacation home in Palm Springs, California.
[1][2] The other driver, Roy R. Stopczynski of Land O' Lakes, was later convicted by a jury of a felony charge of homicide by use of a vehicle while having a prohibited blood-alcohol content.