Joe Bowers

Joe Bowers was an armed robber and one of the first inmates in Alcatraz. He didn't plan to stay very long.

Fiction

Joe Bowers was arrested for armed robbery and sentenced to twenty-five years imprisonment. He was transferred to Alcatraz a few days after the prison's opening in 1934 as one of its first inmates. When recognised by a warder, Bowers told him and the warden not to bother taking notes on him, as he wouldn't be staying too long.

A few months later, Bowers slipped out while a warder was distracted during a mealtime. He managed to escape the boundaries of the prison and planned to swim a mile and a half to shore, but he was spotted from the guards' watch-towers and shot. Four days later, his body was retrieved from the ocean. Though his escape was unsuccessful, he made history as the first to attempt the feat. The Truth About Alcatraz!

Notes

• The real Joseph Bowers was shot while climbing a fence, though his reasoning for doing so is disputed.