Rules and Order Quotes in Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, the FBI, and a Devil's Deal

How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

None of the information obtained during these warrantless break-ins and bug installations could be used [...] in court, but the bugs provided a windfall of intelligence. (1.4.23)

The Organized Crime Squad isn't the only branch of the FBI that plays fast and loose with the rules. Whether breaking into gangsters' homes, threatening them with violence, or employing illegal methods of surveillance, the FBI seems to embody the idea that "the ends justify the means." They just don't expect anyone to take it as far as Connolly does.

Quote #5

Looking around the office at [...] the flashy Connolly [...] Morris was like the team manager jealous of the jocks who started had starred in the big game. (1.5.21)

Although John Morris is specifically chosen to be the supervisor of the Organized Crime Squad due to his fastidious devotion to the rules, it doesn't take much for that devotion to fall by the wayside. After all, Connolly is breaking all the rules, and he seems to be getting along just fine. Why shouldn't Morris get in on the action?

Quote #6

Morris admitted later that the foray was helpful by not necessary to get court approval for the bug. But [...] Bulger and Flemmi made it into the massive T3 document. (2.7.28)

One of the less flashy ways Connolly manipulates the FBI into thinking that Bulger and Flemmi are more important than they actually are is by including their claims, however tangential, in major cases. This way Connolly can build up himself and his informants without actually breaking any rules. Convenient.