Volney Davis
| Volney Davis | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
January 29, 1902 Cherokee Nation, Oklahoma |
| Died | July 20, 1979 (aged 77) Sonoma County, California |
| Other names | Curley |
| Occupation | Bank robber |
| Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment |
| Criminal status | Paroled from Alcatraz in the 1950s |
| Spouse(s) | Daisy I. Graham |
| Conviction(s) | Kidnapping |
Volney Everett "Curley" Davis (January 29, 1902 – July 20, 1979) was an American bank robber and 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.
Born in Cherokee Nation, Oklahoma, Volney Davis's criminal career began in 1919 when he was sentenced to three years imprisonment for grand larceny at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. Davis was an early member of the Oklahoma-based "Central Park Gang" during the 1920s, where he first met the Barker Gang, and committed his first major robbery with Arthur "Doc" Barker when they burglarized St. John's Hospital in Tulsa. The night watchman, Thomas J. Sherrill, was killed during the robbery. Barker was arrested about 5 months later for the murder; however, Davis evaded authorities for nearly a year before he was captured. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the robbery. In February 1923 (or January 1925), he briefly escaped from the state penitentiary in McAlester, participating in a mass escape with several other convicts by using ropes and a ladder to climb over the wall, but was recaptured almost two weeks later.
Seven years later, Davis applied for a 20-month "leave of absence" from the prison which was granted on November 3, 1932. Such leniency was common in Oklahoma during that time, even with such a criminal record as his, although Alvin Karpis later claimed that the state's decision was influenced by a $1,500 bribe. He was scheduled to return to the prison on July 1, 1934, but Davis went on the run instead. A month after his release, he reunited with girlfriend Edna Murray, who herself had escaped from prison for a third time. The couple joined the Alvin Karpis-Barker Gang who were then at the peak of their success and in the midst of a major crime spree. Davis and Murray were later implicated in the kidnapping of St. Paul banker Edward Bremer who was successfully ransomed for $200,000.
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