Joseph B. Keenan

Joseph Berry Keenan (11 January 1888 – 8 December 1954) was an American lawyer best known for serving as Chief Prosecutor for the International Military Tribunal for the Far East.

He was recruited by U.S. Attorney General Homer Stille Cummings to serve as a Special Assistant at the U.S. Department of Justice in 1933.

During this time, Keenan led prosecutions against notable gangsters during the Depression, including Machine Gun Kelly and members of the Barker-Karpis gang.

[2] In January 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Keenan to serve as Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division.

In this role, he was a key liaison between the White House and Congress on issues including legislation addressing kidnapping and organized crime.