Frank Calabrese Jr. is battling multiple sclerosis and walked to the witness stand on Tuesday with a cane.
But even with the hitch in his step, he's still, at 47, a big guy, an intimidating presence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Scully ran through Calabrese Jr.'s education and work history and then elicited the negatives in Calabrese Jr.'s life.
Scully did what is called "fronting" those problems. He knows the defense will pounce on Calabrese Jr.'s criminal conviction and prior drug use, so he got them out front, so the jury wouldn't think the prosecution was hiding something from them.
At first, Calabrese Jr. had a little tremor in his voice. He appeared nervous. But within a few minutes, the shake in his voice disappeared, and he testified in a strong voice.
Calabrese Jr. admitted stealing between $600,000 to $800,000 from his father's secret hiding place.
He said he put some of it in two restaurants, but spent a lot of it on drugs and vacations. Calabrese Jr. had a cocaine problem.
Then he proceded to tell the jurors about life in the Calabrese home.
Many young men, when growing up, worry their fathers will kill them after screwing up.
Few, though, have a father who kills people for a living, as Calabrese Sr. allegedly did.
So when Calabrese Sr. allegedly said to his son, "I'd rather have you dead than disobey me," while sticking a gun in his face, the threat has a bit more weight than the usual paternal threats.
Calabrese Jr.'s testimony provided context for the life he grew up - and for the recorded conversations to come on Monday.
Why was the Anthony Chiaramonti photo submitted as evidence?
WARMBIR RESPONDS: The photo of Tony "The Hatchet" Chiaramonti was introduced as part of the testimony of Donald "Captain D" DiFazio, who took the witness stand earlier in the day on Tuesday before Frank Calabrese Jr.
DiFazio, a longtime employee of Connie's Pizza, described to jurors how his nephew was planning to open a Connie's in Lyons.
Soon after, DiFazio said, he was approached by Joseph "Shorty" LaMantia, a mobster, who asked him to take a ride with him.
DiFazio said he was taken to a parking lot where he met with Chiaramonti, who threatened him that someone would get hurt if the pizza restaurant opened in Lyons.
DiFazio testified that he believed the threat was part of a shakedown.
He testified about the encounter because it is referenced in one of the secretly recorded conversations between DiFazio and Frank Calabrese Jr. Calabrese Jr. made the recordings as part of his cooperation with the FBI.
DiFazio was handling the payment of street tax for Connie's, and Frank Calabrese Jr. was collecting on behalf of his father, who was in prison.
DiFazio was put in the position of paying off one mobster while being shaken down by another. On one of the recordings, he asks what's going on.
What's your feelings on the hatch being murdered and why? They have one guy convicted and it seems in protective custody. Think we'll here more on this?
WARMBIR RESPONDS: Anthony "The Hatchet" Chiaramonti was gunned down, allegedly because of a dispute over video poker machines in the western suburbs.
The driver of the van, Robert Cooper, pleaded guilty, was sentenced to 22 years in prison and has cooperated with authorities.
The suspected gunman, Anthony Calabrese - no relation to the man on trial - is in federal prison on another case.
We may be hearing more about the hit on the Hatch when we get to the secret recordings between reputed top mob boss James Marcello and his half-brother Michael.