Letters From Alcatraz - Michael Esslinger [160]
I regret that this request [for release consideration] must be made under the present unfavorable conditions, rather than under circumstances relevant to the continued progress of some noble social service. Please believe me sincere in my regret, and if there is a loyalty of promise incapable of future betrayal, you may be assured, Sir, that your confidence in me, however great or small, shall never be abused. Since my incarceration, I have made a record which is the envy of everyone. Not one time have I been disobedient, or sullen, nor have I set an example which would not be commendable in the best society. I am a firm believer in discipline, and regulate my actions according to my belief. I believe I have proved myself trustworthy. I am president of the Holy Names Society here inside the prison, a Catholic society, and I know that I have acquitted my office satisfactorily every moment. I do know right from wrong, and certainly try to be well thought of by everyone I meet. The Army and the World War, at age seventeen, gave me a background upon which to build a life equally as remarkable as your own; and I may yet put the right foot first. I am not too proud to ask for help, nor too weak to win if refused. I am not guilty of any crime and have nothing of which to be ashamed. Your will is my determination, Sir, in prison or, at home. More than this no man can promise.
Only six months after composing this letter Coy was released from prison, but he was soon involved in another crime. On April 18, 1937, armed with a sawed-off shotgun, Coy robbed the National Bank of New Haven Kentucky with a friend named Delbert Lee Stiles, and a relative named Richard Coy. The three fugitives made off with just over two thousand dollars and retreated into a small cave by the Rolling Fork River. Three days after the heist, local farmers noticed smoke from their campfire and alerted officials. During the trial that followed, Coy was identified by cashier A.E. Kirkpatrick as the man who had walked up to the cage, drawn a sawed-off shotgun and held him at bay while an accomplice scooped up the money. On June 3, 1937, Bernard Paul Coy was sentenced to twenty-five years and five days in a federal penitentiary. The trio would all be sent to serve out their respective sentences at the Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta.
Bernie did not adjust well to prison life and frequently found himself in isolation as punishment for engaging in altercations with other inmates. It is recorded that Coy physically attacked another inmate with a brutal implement consisting of a razor blade mounted onto a toothbrush handle and this incident would earn him his one-way ticket to Alcatraz. Bernie arrived at Alcatraz on July 31, 1937, and he got off to a rough start during his first years on the Rock. On September 21, 1937 he participated in a work strike stating: “I’m not a big shot or looking for glory, I just want to be locked up in my cell and not be bothered by anyone.” He thus received his first introduction to D Block, and was placed into segregation for one week.
On April 4, 1939 a heated dispute broke out between Bernie and fellow inmate Joe Varsalonawhile they were working in the prison kitchen. In a violent fury, Bernie hit Varsalona, knocking him to the floor. One of the guards came up from the basement, and after trying unsuccessfully to break up the fight, he summoned other correctional officers. But before the other guards could intervene, Varsalona grabbed a butcher knife and inflicted several minor stab wounds on Coy. Bernie was admitted to the prison hospital for seven days and then released back into the general prison population. His first aborted escape attempt came in December of the same year, when it was suspected that Bernie was trying to cut through a steel window-guard in the bakeshop. His actions were quickly halted and as a punitive measure he was thrown