Editing John Dillinger (section)

==Early life==
===Family and background===
John Dillinger was born on June 22, 1903, at 2053 Cooper Street, [[Indianapolis]], Indiana,<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/john-dillinger|title=Famous Cases & Criminals – John Dillinger|publisher=Fbi.gov|access-date=2017-04-21}}</ref> the younger of two children born to John Wilson Dillinger (1864–1943) and Mary Ellen "Mollie" Lancaster (1870–1907).<ref name=matera>{{cite book|title=John Dillinger: The Life and Death of America's First Celebrity Criminal|author=Matera, Dary|publisher=Carroll & Graf Publishers|year=2005|isbn=0-7867-1558-8}}{{pages needed|date=March 2025}}</ref>{{pages needed|date=March 2025}}

Dillinger's parents had married on August 23, 1887. His father was a grocer by trade and, reportedly, a harsh man.<ref name=matera/> In an interview with reporters, Dillinger said that his father was firm in his discipline and believed in the adage "spare the rod and spoil the child".<ref name=matera/> His mother died in 1907, just before his fourth birthday.<ref name=matera/><ref name=fbi>{{cite web|url=https://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/dillinger/dillinger.htm |title=Famous Cases: John Dillinger |access-date=2009-06-26 |publisher=Federal Bureau of Investigation |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090919030546/http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/dillinger/dillinger.htm |archive-date=2009-09-19 }}</ref>
That same year, Dillinger's older sister Audrey married Emmett "Fred" Hancock, in a marriage that produced seven children. She cared for her brother for several years until their father remarried in 1912 to Elizabeth "Lizzie" Fields (1878–1933); they had three children.<ref name=fbi/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wthr.com/story/27856998/depression-era-gangster-john-dillingers-sister-dies-in-mooresville-at-92|title=Depression-era gangster John Dillinger's sister dies in Mooresville at 92|website=[[WTHR]]|date=January 15, 2015|author=WTHR.com Staff|access-date=January 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150119023231/http://www.wthr.com/story/27856998/depression-era-gangster-john-dillingers-sister-dies-in-mooresville-at-92|archive-date=January 19, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Formative years and marriage===
As a teenager, Dillinger was frequently in trouble for fighting and petty theft; he was also noted for his "bewildering personality" and [[bullying]] of smaller children.<ref name=matera/> He quit school to work in an Indianapolis machine shop. Fearing that the city was corrupting his son, Dillinger's father relocated the family to [[Mooresville, Indiana]], in 1921.<ref name=matera/>{{rp|15}} Despite his new rural life, however, Dillinger's wild and rebellious behavior was unchanged. In 1922 he was arrested for [[Motor vehicle theft|auto theft]], and his relationship with his father deteriorated.<ref name=matera/>{{rp|16–17}}

In 1923, Dillinger's troubles resulted in him enlisting in the [[United States Navy]], where he was a [[petty officer third class]] machinery repairman assigned aboard the battleship {{USS|Utah|BB-31|6}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://navy.togetherweserved.com/usn/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=AssignmentExt&ID=1660265|title=Shadow box|website=navy.togetherweserved.com|access-date=2018-02-19}}</ref> He [[Desertion|deserted]] when his ship was docked in [[Boston]] a few months into his service, and was eventually [[dishonorably discharge]]d.<ref name=matera/>

Dillinger returned to Mooresville, where he met Beryl Ethel Hovious.<ref name="birth">"Certificate of Birth: Beryl Hovious" Morgan County Health Department, [[Martinsville, Indiana]]. Filed 9-1923.</ref> The two married on April 12, 1924. Despite Dillinger's attempts to settle down, he found it difficult finding a job.<ref name=":0"/> He subsequently began planning a [[robbery]] with his friend, ex-convict Ed Singleton.<ref name=matera/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Landers |first1=Chris |title=Dillinger played ball before he robbed banks |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/bank-robber-john-dillinger-played-baseball |website=MLB |publisher=MLB Advanced Media |access-date=April 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200426125200/https://www.mlb.com/news/bank-robber-john-dillinger-played-baseball |archive-date=26 April 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref> 

Dillinger and Singleton robbed a Mooresville grocery store, stealing $50 (about $917 in 2024).<ref name=matera/> During the robbery, Dillinger struck a victim on the head with a machine bolt wrapped in a cloth, and carried a gun which, although it discharged, hit no one. While leaving the scene, the criminals were seen by a minister who recognized the two men and reported them to the police. They were arrested the next day. Singleton pleaded not guilty, but after Dillinger's father (the local Mooresville [[deacon]]) discussed the matter with [[Morgan County, Indiana|Morgan County]] [[prosecutor]] Omar O'Harrow, his father convinced Dillinger to confess to the crime and plead guilty without retaining a [[defense (law)|defense]] attorney.<ref name=matera/>

Dillinger was convicted of [[assault]] and [[battery (crime)|battery]] with intent to rob, and [[conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]] to commit a [[felony]]. He expected a lenient sentence of [[probation]] as a result of his father's discussion with O'Harrow but was sentenced instead to ten to twenty years in prison.<ref name="fbi"/> Dillinger's father told reporters he regretted his advice and was appalled by the sentence, pleading with the judge to shorten the sentence without success.<ref name=matera/>{{rp|25}} En route to Mooresville to testify against Singleton, Dillinger briefly escaped his captors but was apprehended within a few minutes.<ref name=matera/>{{rp|27}} Singleton had a [[change of venue]] and was sentenced to a jail term of two to fourteen years. He was killed on September 2, 1937, when he fell asleep on railroad tracks while drunk.<ref>{{cite web|title=Dillinger's Partner In First Crime Killed|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oLEhAAAAIBAJ&pg=4324%2C315762|date=September 2, 1937|access-date=August 10, 2018|work=[[Reading Eagle]]|page=14|via=Google News}}</ref>