Joseph Paul "Dutch" Cretzer
Alcatraz register no. 548. The warden's notebook page records receipt from USP McNeil on 27 August 1940 under sentences for bank robbery, escape and second-degree murder, and a typed header recording the 2 to 4 May 1946 prison break and that his body was found on 4 May.
- Born
- 1911-04-17
- Died
- 1946-05-04
- Aliases
- Dutch
- 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
- 1940-08-27 — The warden's notebook page (NAID 236735810) records him received at Alcatraz from "USP McNEIL," age 29, date of birth 4-17-11, offenses "(1) Bank Robbery (2) Escape (3) MURDER 2nd DEGREE."
- 1940-10-23 — A note on the page records that he was returned to Tacoma, Washington on Sept. 21, 1940, tried for murder after a plea of guilty, sentenced to life on 10/21/40, and returned to Alcatraz on October 23, 1940. The catalog gives the 09/21/1940 transfer as to "WHC (USDC TACOMA, WA)."
- 1941-05-21 — The Bureau of Prisons lists a May 21, 1941 incident in which Joe Cretzer, Sam Shockley, Arnold Kyle and Lloyd Barkdoll took several correctional officers hostage in the industries area.
- 1946-05-04 — A header typed on the page after the events reads "body found, dead with gunshot wounds, MAY 4, 1946 IN UTILITY CORRIDOR, C-BLOCK, about 9:45 a.m." The Bureau of Prisons names him among the six prisoners in the "Battle of Alcatraz" of May 2-4, 1946.
The catalog gives the origin of his transfer as US Penitentiary, Marion, where the page prints McNeil; this page records both. The catalog remark reads “ATT ESC 05-21-41; 05-02-46; KYLE’S B-I-L,” of which the last part is not expanded. The catalog gives a birth date of 04/17/1911 and a death date of 05/04/1946 at Alcatraz. 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 Joseph Paul Cretzer, No. 548Bureau of Prisons notebook page with the identification photograph of Joseph Paul Cretzer, No. 548, received at Alcatraz from USP McNeil on 27 August 1940 under sentences for bank robbery, escape and second-degree murder; a typed header records the 2 to 4 May 1946 prison break and that his body was found on 4 May. 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.