On this day in 1922 the US Senate opened an investigation into what would become the largest scandal in American history up to then. The Teapot Dome Scandal involved the Secretary of the Interior, Albert B. Fall taking bribes in exchange for leasing oil fields on public lands to Harry F. Sinclair (Mammoth Oil, a subsidiary of Sinclair Oil) and Edward L. Doheny (Pan American Petroleum) for a fraction of their value. Prior to the scandal, Fall was well known for successfully defending the accused killer of former Sheriff Pat Garrett. Garrett was famous as the man who killed Billy The Kid.
In 1929 Fall was convicted and jailed for one year. He was the first former Cabinet member to be sent to prison for actions in office. Find out more on Wikipedia.
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