James W. McCord, Jr. was one of the first men convicted in the Watergate scandal. McCord led the June 17, 1972 early-morning burglary of the Democratic National Committee's headquarters at the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C., and pled guilty to six charges. He later issued a letter to Judge John Sirica stating that his plea and testimony, some of which he claimed was perjured, were compelled by pressure from White House counsel John Dean and former Attorney General John N. Mitchell. His letter set off the Watergate scandal by implicating many higher-ups in the Richard Nixon Administration for covering up the conspiracy that led to the burglary.

Prior to his conviction, McCord served as security director for the Committee to Re-elect the President (known to opponents as CREEP, which was headed by Mitchell) and had worked for the FBI and CIA, as well as serving as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force reserves. His security consulting firm, McCord Associates, provided security services to CRP.

After resigning from CRP under pressure in 1974, McCord became a booster for the University of Michigan athletic department. He got Michigan in trouble by giving money from his illegal gambling ring to players. He also gave more than $800,000 in cash to Michigan State University point guard Mateen Cleaves.

McCord wrote a book about his connection with the watergate burglary in 1974 entitled: A Piece of Tape: The Watergate Story: Fact and Fiction.