From the film’s introduction, and the revelation that a seventeen year old high school student was given the ownership of a hockey team, I was expecting Crime and Penalties to be a story about some entitled and immature brat, that didn’t understand or appreciate the value of money, running the team into the ground but instead what unfolded was a story about corruption, organised crime and federal investigations.

You guys should know the drill by now, new directors (Chapman and Maclain Way) take the helm but the style is the same with a balanced mix of talking head interviews, archival footage and home videos unravelling the story, piece by fabulous piece.

There isn’t much that a parent wouldn’t do to make their child happy, especially if they have the money to give them the world, so when seventeen year old AJ Galante’s dreams of becoming a professional hockey player were crushed after an injury, his dad, James ‘Jimmy’ Galante, purchased him a team of his very own and appointed him manager.

Named after the family business of waste management and removal, and inspired by his love of WWE, AJ’s vision for the Danbury Trashers was simple – he wanted his team to be the bad boys of hockey. Building a team around this ethos, the Trashers quickly made their mark on the United Hockey League with on-ice brawls a staple of their game, and a supporting home crowd who reveled in the bad boy mentality. It also helped that AJ actually built quite a successful and competitive team that could challenge for titles.

But whilst AJ Galante was living the American Dream, the FBI were busy building a case against Jimmy Galante and two years after they were founded, the Danbury Trashers were disbanded due to their links with money laundering, racketeering and organised crime.

The Bad Boys of hockey indeed.

Once again, I had no prior knowledge of the events depicted so it was great to just sit back and let this story unfold in the way that the directors intended. With Crime And Penalties there was less focus on the mental health aspects of sport and more on the sense of family that it can evoke. From team mates to coaching staff to the fans, it offers something of an insight into how and why people get so emotionally invested into the rise and falls of their respective teams.

But it’s not all jolly and light, we hear recordings of death threats from wire tapped phones, see men in positions of authority go against their principles when the money starts rolling in and wads of cash handed over as rewards for loyalty. Yes, it’s the rather stereotypical cinematic tropes of mobsters and mafia guys played out in real life, shining a light on the seemingly endless reach and influence of the criminal underworld and how it can permeate the things we take for granted everyday.

Crime and Penalties is now available to stream on Netflix.

Don’t forget to check out my reviews of the other episodes in Netflix’s Untold series
– Malice At The Palace
– Deal With The Devil
– Caitlyn Jenner
– Breaking Point