John Paul Scott: Difference between revisions

John Paul Scott
John Paul Scott
	John Paul Scott, Alcatraz prisoner #1403, 4/1/1959
Born	January 3, 1927; Springfield, Kentucky, US
Died	February 22, 1987 (aged 60); Tallahassee, Florida, US
Known for	The only known inmate to successfully escape from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary (recaptured)
Criminal status	Deceased in custody
Criminal charge	Bank robbery, possession of unregistered firearms
Penalty	30 years in prison

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John Paul Scott (January 3, 1927^[1] – February 22, 1987^[2]) was an American criminal who is noted as the only escapee from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary known to have reached the San Francisco shore by swimming. He was recaptured almost immediately.

Biography

Scott was born in Springfield, Kentucky. He was convicted of bank robbery and the possession of unregistered firearms in Lexington, Kentucky, and sentenced to thirty years in prison.^[1]^[2]

Alcatraz

Scott was sent to Alcatraz Island in 1959 and given prisoner number #AZ 1403. On the evening of December 16, 1962, the 35-year-old tried to escape from the island, together with 31-year-old Darl Lee Parker (inmate #1413-AZ), a convicted bank robber and hijacker who was sentenced to 50 years. While working on culinary duty in a storage room below the kitchen, the two bent the bars of a window in the latrine of the cell block, climbed down a rope, and made it to the water. They then attempted to float to the San Francisco shore, a distance of 1.4 miles. For that purpose, they made water wings from stolen rubber gloves which they blew up. The escape was noticed at 5:47 a.m.^[3] Parker had to give up after a short time because he had broken his ankle during the escape. He was recaptured twenty minutes after the escape was discovered, on the rock formation Little Alcatraz, which lies 100 yards from Alcatraz Island.

Although the Coast Guard was searching the bay, they failed to find Scott. At 7:40 a.m., the Presidio Military Police got a call from one of four teenagers who had found an unconscious man at Fort Point beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. That man proved to be John Paul Scott, suffering from hypothermia and exhaustion. Apparently he had been carried by the ebbing tide to this location, approximately 3 miles from Alcatraz. After recovering in the Letterman General Hospital, he was immediately returned to Alcatraz.

It had seemed impossible to escape from Alcatraz by swimming.^[4] The seasonal water temperature in the Bay is about 53 °F (12 °C) in December^[5] and the current can exceed 6 knots.^[6] Citing these facts, as well as razor-sharp rocks and occasional visits from great white sharks, prison officers had discouraged most escape attempts. When Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin had escaped and disappeared half a year earlier, prison officials had said that they had likely drowned (although the FBI just listed them as missing). Scott's escape shook this line of reasoning. For the first time it was proved that a prisoner could escape (if only temporarily) by swimming.^[7]^[8]

Closure of Alcatraz

Alcatraz Prison was closed on 21 March 1963,^[9] resulting in the moving of all of its inmates to other facilities. This closure was predominantly due to the expensive operational costs of the facility and structural problems, but was hastened by the escape of John Paul Scott and others.

Later life

After the closing of Alcatraz 3 months after his 1962 escape attempt, Scott was first transferred to Leavenworth and later to a prison in Marion, Illinois, where he made another escape attempt. From there he spent several years at the Oak Park Heights prison in Minnesota. He died in February 1987 in the Federal Correctional Institution, Tallahassee, Florida.

References

^ ^a ^b "Scott, J. Paul, United States Federal Prison Record". National Archives at San Francisco. 31 March 1959. Archived from the original on 2021-11-25. Retrieved 2020-10-09.
^ ^a ^b "Escapes from Alcatraz Gallery: Escape No. 14". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2022-04-04. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
^ "Escapes from Alcatraz Archives". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2021-02-25. Retrieved 2020-10-09.
^ Klein, Christopher. "10 Things You May Not Know About Alcatraz". History in the Headlines. Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
^ "Water Temperature Table of All Coastal Regions". National Centers for Environmental Information. Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
^ "BookletChart Gulf of the Farallones NOAA Chart 18645" (PDF). NauticalCharts.NOAA.gov. NOAA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 February 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2015. Outbound tidal current is strongest about 4 hours after high water at the Golden Gate Bridge and attains a velocity in excess of 6 knots at times.
^ "Alcatraz Archive". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2019-07-27. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
^ Howley, Elaine K. "The Art of the Escape". U.S. Masters Swimming. Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
^ "BOP: Alcatraz". www.bop.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-03.

External links

[federal-1] "Scott, J. Paul, United States Federal Prison Record". National Archives at San Francisco. 31 March 1959. Archived from the original on 2021-11-25. Retrieved 2020-10-09.

[sfgenealogy-2] "Escapes from Alcatraz Gallery: Escape No. 14". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2022-04-04. Retrieved 2022-04-04.

[3] "Escapes from Alcatraz Archives". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2021-02-25. Retrieved 2020-10-09.

[History_in_the_Headlines-4] Klein, Christopher. "10 Things You May Not Know About Alcatraz". History in the Headlines. Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2017.

[5] "Water Temperature Table of All Coastal Regions". National Centers for Environmental Information. Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2019-08-31.

[6] "BookletChart Gulf of the Farallones NOAA Chart 18645" (PDF). NauticalCharts.NOAA.gov. NOAA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 February 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2015. Outbound tidal current is strongest about 4 hours after high water at the Golden Gate Bridge and attains a velocity in excess of 6 knots at times.

[7] "Alcatraz Archive". SFgenealogy. Archived from the original on 2019-07-27. Retrieved 2019-08-31.

[U.S._Masters_Swimming-8] Howley, Elaine K. "The Art of the Escape". U.S. Masters Swimming. Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.

[9] "BOP: Alcatraz". www.bop.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-03.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|American bank robber}}
-{{about||the geneticist|John Paul Scott (geneticist)}}
-{{about||the minister|Jon Paul Scott}}
+{{about||the geneticist|John Paul Scott (geneticist)|the minister|Jon Paul Scott}}
 {{infobox criminal
 |birth_date = {{birth date|1927|1|3}}
-|birth_place = [[Springfield, Kentucky]]
+|birth_place = [[Springfield, Kentucky]], US
 |image = John Paul Scott.jpg
 |caption = John Paul Scott, Alcatraz prisoner #1403, 4/1/1959
@@ Line 10: / Line 11: @@
 |known = The only known inmate to successfully escape from [[Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary]] (recaptured)
 |death_date = {{death date and age|1987|2|22|1927|1|3}}
-|death_place = [[Tallahassee, Florida]]
+|death_place = [[Tallahassee, Florida]], US
 |criminal_status = Deceased in custody
 }}
-'''John Paul Scott''' (January 3, 1927<ref name="federal">{{Cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1403-AZ_(Scott_WNP).jpg|title=Scott, J. Paul, United States Federal Prison Record|date=31 March 1959|publisher=National Archives at San Francisco|access-date=2020-10-09}}</ref> – February 22, 1987<ref name="sfgenealogy">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoeat14.htm|title=Escapes from Alcatraz Gallery: Escape No. 14|publisher=SFgenealogy|accessdate=2015-03-09}}</ref>) was an American criminal who is noted as the only escapee from [[Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary]] known to have reached the [[San Francisco]] shore by swimming. He was recaptured almost immediately.
+'''John Paul Scott''' (January 3, 1927<ref name="federal">{{Cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1403-AZ_(Scott_WNP).jpg|title=Scott, J. Paul, United States Federal Prison Record|date=31 March 1959|publisher=National Archives at San Francisco|access-date=2020-10-09|archive-date=2021-11-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125105859/https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1403-AZ_(Scott_WNP).jpg|url-status=live}}</ref> – February 22, 1987<ref name="sfgenealogy">{{Cite web|url=https://library.sfgenealogy.org/projects/Escapes_from_Alcatraz/sfoeat14.htm|title=Escapes from Alcatraz Gallery: Escape No. 14|publisher=SFgenealogy|accessdate=2022-04-04|archive-date=2022-04-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220404181723/https://library.sfgenealogy.org/projects/Escapes_from_Alcatraz/sfoeat14.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>) was an American criminal who is noted as the only escapee from [[Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary]] known to have reached the [[San Francisco]] shore by swimming. He was recaptured almost immediately.
 ==Biography==
 {{expand section|date=June 2015}}
-Scott was born in [[Springfield, Kentucky|Springfield]], [[Kentucky]]. He was convicted of bank robbery and the possession of unregistered firearms in [[Lexington, Kentucky]], and sentenced to thirty years in prison.<ref name="federal" /><ref name="sfgenealogy" />
+Scott was born in [[Springfield, Kentucky]]. He was convicted of bank robbery and the possession of unregistered firearms in [[Lexington, Kentucky]], and sentenced to thirty years in prison.<ref name="federal" /><ref name="sfgenealogy" />
 [[File:1403-AZ (Scott WNP).jpg|thumb|John Paul Scott, Federal Prison Record, 1959]]
 ==Alcatraz==
-He was sent to [[Alcatraz Island]] in 1959 and given prisoner number #AZ 1403. On the evening of December 16, 1962, the 35-year-old tried to escape from the island, together with 31-year-old Darl Lee Parker (inmate #1413-AZ), a convicted bank robber and hijacker who was sentenced to 50 years. While working on culinary duty in a storage room below the kitchen, the two bent the bars of a window in the latrine of the cell block, climbed down a rope, and made it to the water. They then attempted to float to the San Francisco shore, a distance of 1.4 miles. For that purpose, they made [[water wings]] from stolen rubber gloves which they blew up. The escape was noticed at 5:47&nbsp;a.m.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm#n136|title=Escapes from Alcatraz Archives|publisher=SFgenealogy|access-date=2020-10-09}}</ref> Parker had to give up after a short time because he had broken his ankle during the escape. He was recaptured twenty minutes after the escape was discovered, on the rock formation [[Little Alcatraz]], which lies 100 yards from Alcatraz Island.
+Scott was sent to [[Alcatraz Island]] in 1959 and given prisoner number #AZ 1403. On the evening of December 16, 1962, the 35-year-old tried to escape from the island, together with 31-year-old Darl Lee Parker (inmate #1413-AZ), a convicted bank robber and hijacker who was sentenced to 50 years. While working on culinary duty in a storage room below the kitchen, the two bent the bars of a window in the latrine of the cell block, climbed down a rope, and made it to the water. They then attempted to float to the San Francisco shore, a distance of 1.4 miles. For that purpose, they made [[water wings]] from stolen rubber gloves which they blew up. The escape was noticed at 5:47&nbsp;a.m.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm#n136|title=Escapes from Alcatraz Archives|publisher=SFgenealogy|access-date=2020-10-09|archive-date=2021-02-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225155329/https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm#n136|url-status=live}}</ref> Parker had to give up after a short time because he had broken his ankle during the escape. He was recaptured twenty minutes after the escape was discovered, on the rock formation [[Little Alcatraz]], which lies 100 yards from Alcatraz Island.
-Although the [[Coast Guard]] was searching the bay, they failed to find Scott. At 7:40&nbsp;a.m., the [[Presidio of San Francisco|Presidio]] [[Military Police]] got a call from one of four teenagers who had found an unconscious man at [[Fort Point, San Francisco|Fort Point]] beneath the [[Golden Gate Bridge]]. That man proved to be John Paul Scott, suffering from [[hypothermia]] and [[Fatigue (physical)|exhaustion]]. Apparently he had been carried by the ebbing tide to this location, approximately 3 miles from Alcatraz. After recovering in the [[Letterman Army Hospital|Letterman General Hospital]], he was immediately returned to Alcatraz.<ref name="Find a Grave">{{cite web|title=John Paul Scott|url=https://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=53612955|publisher=Find a Grave|accessdate=26 February 2017}}</ref>
+Although the [[Coast Guard]] was searching the bay, they failed to find Scott. At 7:40&nbsp;a.m., the [[Presidio of San Francisco|Presidio]] [[Military Police]] got a call from one of four teenagers who had found an unconscious man at [[Fort Point, San Francisco|Fort Point]] beneath the [[Golden Gate Bridge]]. That man proved to be John Paul Scott, suffering from [[hypothermia]] and [[Fatigue (physical)|exhaustion]]. Apparently he had been carried by the ebbing tide to this location, approximately 3 miles from Alcatraz. After recovering in the [[Letterman Army Hospital|Letterman General Hospital]], he was immediately returned to Alcatraz.
-It had seemed impossible to escape from [[Alcatraz]] by [[human swimming|swimming]].<ref name="History in the Headlines">{{cite web|last1=Klein|first1=Christopher|title=10 Things You May Not Know About Alcatraz|url=http://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-alcatraz|publisher=History in the Headlines|accessdate=26 February 2017}}</ref> The seasonal water temperature in the Bay is about 53&nbsp;°F (12&nbsp;°C) in December<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/all_meanT.html|title=Water Temperature Table of All Coastal Regions|website=National Centers for Environmental Information|access-date=2019-08-31}}</ref> and the current can exceed 6 [[Knot (unit)|knots]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BookletChart Gulf of the Farallones NOAA Chart 18645|url=http://ocsdata.ncd.noaa.gov/BookletChart/18645_BookletChart.pdf|website=NauticalCharts.NOAA.gov|publisher=NOAA|accessdate=13 October 2015|quote=Outbound tidal current is strongest about 4 hours after high water at the Golden Gate Bridge and attains a velocity in excess of 6 knots at times.}}</ref> Citing these facts, as well as razor-sharp rocks and occasional visits from [[great white shark]]s, prison officers had discouraged most escape attempts. When [[Frank Morris (prisoner)|Frank Morris]] and brothers [[John Anglin (criminal)|John]] and [[Clarence Anglin]] had escaped and disappeared half a year earlier, prison officials had said that they had likely drowned (although the [[FBI]] just listed them as missing). Scott's escape shook this line of reasoning. For the first time it was proved that a prisoner could escape (if only temporarily) by swimming.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm|title=Alcatraz Archive|publisher=SFgenealogy|access-date=2019-08-31}}</ref><ref name="U.S. Masters Swimming">{{cite web|last1=Howley|first1=Elaine K.|title=The Art of the Escape|url=http://www.usms.org/articles/articledisplay.php?aid=2832|publisher=U.S. Masters Swimming|accessdate=26 February 2017}}</ref>
+It had seemed impossible to escape from [[Alcatraz]] by [[human swimming|swimming]].<ref name="History in the Headlines">{{cite web|last1=Klein|first1=Christopher|title=10 Things You May Not Know About Alcatraz|url=http://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-alcatraz|publisher=History in the Headlines|accessdate=26 February 2017|archive-date=24 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624092928/https://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-alcatraz|url-status=live}}</ref> The seasonal water temperature in the Bay is about 53&nbsp;°F (12&nbsp;°C) in December<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/all_meanT.html|title=Water Temperature Table of All Coastal Regions|website=National Centers for Environmental Information|access-date=2019-08-31|archive-date=2017-09-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905202557/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/all_meanT.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and the current can exceed 6 [[Knot (unit)|knots]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BookletChart Gulf of the Farallones NOAA Chart 18645|url=http://ocsdata.ncd.noaa.gov/BookletChart/18645_BookletChart.pdf|website=NauticalCharts.NOAA.gov|publisher=NOAA|accessdate=13 October 2015|quote=Outbound tidal current is strongest about 4 hours after high water at the Golden Gate Bridge and attains a velocity in excess of 6 knots at times.|archive-date=21 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130221082256/http://ocsdata.ncd.noaa.gov/BookletChart/18645_BookletChart.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Citing these facts, as well as razor-sharp rocks and occasional visits from [[great white shark]]s, prison officers had discouraged most escape attempts. When [[Frank Morris (prisoner)|Frank Morris]] and brothers [[John Anglin (criminal)|John]] and [[Clarence Anglin]] had escaped and disappeared half a year earlier, prison officials had said that they had likely drowned (although the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] just listed them as missing). Scott's escape shook this line of reasoning. For the first time it was proved that a prisoner could escape (if only temporarily) by swimming.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm|title=Alcatraz Archive|publisher=SFgenealogy|access-date=2019-08-31|archive-date=2019-07-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190727193529/http://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/sfoealce.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="U.S. Masters Swimming">{{cite web|last1=Howley|first1=Elaine K.|title=The Art of the Escape|url=http://www.usms.org/articles/articledisplay.php?aid=2832|publisher=U.S. Masters Swimming|accessdate=26 February 2017|archive-date=26 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226212920/http://www.usms.org/articles/articledisplay.php?aid=2832|url-status=live}}</ref>
-===Later life===
+=== Closure of Alcatraz ===
+Alcatraz Prison was closed on 21 March 1963,<ref>{{Cite web |title=BOP: Alcatraz |url=https://www.bop.gov/about/history/alcatraz.jsp |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=www.bop.gov}}</ref> resulting in the moving of all of its inmates to other facilities. This closure was predominantly due to the expensive operational costs of the facility and structural problems, but was hastened by the escape of John Paul Scott and others.
-After the closing of [[Alcatraz]], Scott was first transferred to [[United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth|Leavenworth]] and later to [[United States Penitentiary, Marion|a prison]] in [[Marion, Illinois|Marion]], [[Illinois]], where he made another escape attempt. From there he spent several years at the [[Minnesota Correctional Facility – Oak Park Heights|Oak Park Heights prison]] in Minnesota. He died in February 1987 in the [[Federal Correctional Institution, Tallahassee]], Florida.<ref name="Find a Grave" />
+=== Later life ===
+After the closing of [[Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary|Alcatraz]] 3 months after his 1962 escape attempt, Scott was first transferred to [[United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth|Leavenworth]] and later to [[United States Penitentiary, Marion|a prison]] in [[Marion, Illinois|Marion]], [[Illinois]], where he made another escape attempt. From there he spent several years at the [[Minnesota Correctional Facility – Oak Park Heights|Oak Park Heights prison]] in Minnesota. He died in February 1987 in the [[Federal Correctional Institution, Tallahassee]], Florida.
+==See also==
+*[[List of prison escapes]]
 ==References==
@@ Line 35: / Line 42: @@
 ==External links==
-*[https://www.sfgenealogy.org/sf/history/aindex.htm SFgenealogy]
+*[https://library.sfgenealogy.org/projects/Escapes_from_Alcatraz/aindex.htm SFgenealogy]
 *[http://www.alcatrazhistory.com/escapes2.htm alcatrazhistory.com]
 *[http://www.bop.gov/about/history/alcatraz.jsp Bureau of Prisons]
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, John Paul}}
+[[Category:1927 births]]
 [[Category:1987 deaths]]
 [[Category:American bank robbers]]
-[[Category:1927 births]]
 [[Category:American escapees]]
+[[Category:American people who died in prison custody]]
+[[Category:Criminals from Kentucky]]
+[[Category:Escapees from United States federal government detention]]
 [[Category:Inmates of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary]]
-[[Category:Escapees from United States federal government detention]]
+[[Category:People from Springfield, Kentucky]]
 [[Category:Prisoners who died in United States federal government detention]]