Volney Davis
Volney Davis | |
---|---|
Alcatraz in the 1950s | |
Spouse | Edna Murray |
Conviction(s) | Kidnapping |
Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment |
Volney Everett "Curley" Davis (February 14, 1902 – July 20, 1979) was an American bank robber and Great Depression-era outlaw. A longtime Oklahoma bandit, he was the boyfriend of Edna Murray and an associate of both the John Dillinger and Alvin Karpis-Barker gangs during the 1930s.[1]
Biography
Born in
Davis was an early member of the Tulsa-based Central Park Gang during the 1920s, where he first met the
Seven years later, Davis applied for a 20-month "leave of absence" from the prison which was granted on November 3, 1932.
Davis received an unscheduled visit from John Dillinger and Homer Van Meter at his home in Aurora, Illinois. They had brought John "Red" Hamilton, who had been mortally wounded days earlier in a running gunfight in Minnesota hours after their escape from Little Bohemia Lodge. Davis agreed to hide Hamilton in his home and, with Murray, looked after him until he died of his wounds a few days later.[9] Dillinger, Doc Barker, Van Meter, and Davis later buried Hamilton in an unmarked grave.[1]
Davis and Murray were never charged with the holdups he committed while part of the Karpis-Barker Gang. However, they were indicted for the Bremer kidnapping on January 22, 1935. A little over two weeks later, Davis was captured in St. Louis by federal agents on February 6, but escaped from federal custody the next day. He had been traveling under escort to stand trial in St. Paul when their plane was forced to land in Yorkville, Illinois. Once on the ground, Davis knocked out a guard and stole a car. He evaded capture for nearly four months before being traced to Chicago by the FBI and arrested by Agent Melvin Purvis on June 1. He was eventually returned to St. Paul where he was convicted of kidnapping and sentenced to life imprisonment.[1][6][8] Davis cooperated with the government and gave information as well as testified against other members of the gang.
Like the rest of the Karpis-Barker Gang, Davis was sent to
References
- ^ ISBN 0-8160-4488-0
- ^ "Volney Davis, Appellant, v. United States of America, Appellee, 226 F.2d 834 (8th Cir. 1955)". Justia Law. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
- ^ Mooney, Martin. The Parole Scandal. Los Angeles: Lymanhouse, 1939. (pg. 291)
- ISBN 9780923582012.
- ISBN 0-306-80626-6
- ^ ISBN 0-520-25607-7
- ISBN 0-8135-2487-3
- ^ ISBN 0-275-94990-7
- ISBN 0-7867-1558-8