Albert L. "George" Bates
Alcatraz register no. 137. The warden's notebook page records receipt from Leavenworth on 4 September 1934 under a life sentence for kidnapping and holding for ransom, and a red header recording his death in the prison hospital on 4 July 1948.
- Born
- 1893-10-16
- Died
- 1948-07-04
- Aliases
- George, Albert Lawrence Bates (catalog title)
- Rights
- Biography on this page is limited to what the cited federal records state. The identification photograph is a Bureau of Prisons record, public domain under 17 U.S.C. § 105.
On the record
- 1934-09-04 — The warden's notebook page (NAID 236734592) records "Albert L. Bates" received at Alcatraz from Leavenworth, date of birth 10/16/93, offense "Kidnaping & Holding for Ransom," dated October 7, 1933, sentence "Life," district "W/Okla., (Okla., City)."
- 1948-07-04 — The page's red header reads "Died, 4:27 a.m. July 4, 1948 in Prison Hospital, heart trouble." The catalog gives a transfer on 07/04/1948 "to DEATH" and a death place of Alcatraz.
The catalog’s offense text carries the name “URSCHEL” in parentheses; the page itself prints the offense as kidnapping and holding for ransom. A staff note on the page about ransom money is not repeated here. The role and family fields are left empty because no record cited here states either. Offenses are given as the notebook form prints them; the “Reason for Transfer” boxes are staff opinion and are not used.
Records
itemAlcatraz warden's notebook page for Albert L. Bates, No. 137Bureau of Prisons notebook page with the identification photograph of Albert L. Bates, No. 137, received at Alcatraz from Leavenworth on 4 September 1934 under a life sentence for kidnapping and holding for ransom; a red header records his death in the prison hospital on 4 July 1948. A copy is stored here.itemAlcatraz (Federal Bureau of Prisons history page)The Bureau of Prisons' history page on Alcatraz names Al Capone among the well-known criminals who did time there, and says most of its prisoners were not well-known gangsters.itemAlcatraz warden's notebook page for Albert L. Bates, No. 137Bureau of Prisons notebook page with the identification photograph of Albert L. Bates, No. 137, received at Alcatraz from Leavenworth on 4 September 1934 under a life sentence for kidnapping and holding for ransom; a red header records his death in the prison hospital on 4 July 1948. A copy is stored here.itemIndictment in United States v. Albert Bates, et al., Urschel kidnaping (23 August 1933)Ten-page federal indictment of 23 August 1933 against Albert L. Bates, George R. Kelly, Kathryn Thorne Kelly, Harvey J. Bailey, the Shannons and others for the conspiracy to kidnap Charles F. Urschel.item10478: United States v. Albert Bates, et al. (Western District of Oklahoma): the Urschel kidnaping fileNational Archives file unit for the federal prosecution of the Urschel kidnaping at Oklahoma City. The defendants included George R. "Machine Gun" Kelly and Kathryn Thorne Kelly. The filings are catalogued as separate items.itemLaska v. United States, 82 F.2d 672 (10th Cir. 1936)The Tenth Circuit's affirmance of the conviction of Denver attorney Ben B. Laska for joining the Urschel conspiracy by helping conceal and pass ransom money. Its summary of the kidnaping is the clearest the court gave.itemShannon v. United States, 76 F.2d 490 (10th Cir. 1935)The Tenth Circuit's affirmance of the convictions of R. G. Shannon and Ora L. Shannon in the Urschel kidnaping. It recites how Urschel was held at the Shannon property and rejects the defense of coercion.