Autopsy Reports From St. Valentine's Day Massacre Recovered by Medical Examiner

CHICAGO, IL - It has been 87 years since the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, one of the most gruesome crimes in the history of Chicago, and soon we may finally get to take a look at the autopsy reports.

The records from the Feb. 14, 1929 slaughter were long considered to have been forever unattainable, but they are now in the possession of James Sledge, an executive officer with the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.

In an event that forever changed the control of the Chicago Mob and paved the way for “Scarface” Al Capone’s rise to power, seven men were gunned down in a Lincoln Park garage that stood at a now vacant lot at 2122 N. Clark St.

The garage was a prime hangout of Capone’s rival gang, one led by George “Bugs” Moran. Four men - two dressed as police officers - lined up seven of Moran’s men against a wall and riddled them with gunfire, according to a report on The History Channel. More than 160 machine gun casings were found at the scene which has been described as “a total bloodbath.”

It’s believed that the victims believed it to have been an actual police raid since there was no sign of struggle and that it was Capone who masterminded the crime. No one has ever been convicted of the killings.

Although Moran - the primary target - was not present and survived the attack, his gang was in shambles. Capone became the undisputed boss of Chicago’s underworld.

CBS 2 and others report Sledge is still considering where the documents should be stored and how accessible they should be to the public. They will remain property of the Medical Examiner’s office forever.