Lageson's excellent account of the 1946 Alcatraz Seize which focuses on the resulting trial of inmates Carnes, Shockley and Thompson.

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Product Description

In May of 1946, Alcatraz was rocked by the most sensational and bloody escape attempt in the island’s history. Six convicts obtained guns and took nine guards hostage, one of whom was the author’s father. Before the uprising was quelled, two guards and three prisoners lay dead and fifteen officers had been wounded. Alcatraz Justice chronicles the trial that followed. Drawing from his background as a litigation attorney with thirty-five years of jury trial experience, Ernest Lageson gives life to the drama played out by the four principal lawyers.

The trial came to have almost as much drama as the crime. Sitting on the bench was a judge who, it could be argued, was prejudicial to the prosecution, and who berated one young defense attorney mercilessly in front of the jury. The most experienced of the defense team was ill-prepared and self-aggrandizing with the press. One of the defendants was severely mentally challenged who also had been diagnosed schizophrenic. In a dramatic, four week courtroom battle, the surviving insurgents were found guilty of first-degree murder. This book gives frank and disturbing insight into our criminal justice system.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1056165 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 337 pages

From Library Journal
One of the country's most sensational murder trials took place 56 years ago and involved men who were already in prison. This historical and legal account by trial lawyer Lageson (Battle at Alcatraz) describes an incident that began in May 1946, when six inmates on Alcatraz Island invaded a gun gallery, stole weapons, and captured a cell house, taking nine hostages. During the uprising, three of those inmates and one officer were killed. The three remaining inmates were tried in the Federal District Court of California for the officer's murder. The trial had all the elements of a contemporary trial: allegations of abuse by prison authorities, misleading testimonies regarding what happened, and, especially, questions about the sanity of defendant Sam Shockley. The outcome the execution of Shockley and Miran Thompson and the freeing of Native American Clarence Carnes comes at the end of a suspenseful drama. Lageson, whose father was one of the guards held hostage, has documented the proceedings in exhaustive detail. For readers who have patience, this book offers a good look at how the U.S. justice system works. Recommended for crime collections. Frances Sandiford, Green Haven Correctional Facility Lib., Stormville, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review
"... Alcatraz Justice is exciting and extremely an authentic portrait of our criminal justice system." -- Honorable Eugene Lynch, U. S. District Judge, Retired

"In this vividly written work of historical and legal scholarship, Lageson captures the high drama of the most significant trial..." -- Dr. Kevin Starr, State Librarian of California

"vivd, compelling and rich... Lageson’s crisp style, combined with his legal background, gives the reader incredible realism." -- Jerry Kennealy, author of the Nick Polo Mystery Series

About the Author
ERNEST B. LAGESON graduated from the University of California’s Law School in 1959. He began his career as a deputy district attorney in Contra Costa County. Over the next twenty-five years, he became nationally recognized for his work in civil jury and nonjury cases. Invited into such prestigious trail lawyer organizations, Lageson served as president of the Defense Research Institute. Mr. Lageson’s first book, Battle at Alcatraz, was published in 1999.

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Customer Reviews

Sequel to Battle at Alcatraz
Author Ernest Lageson, son of the former Alcatraz prison guard and author of Battle At Alcatraz, has written a great follow up of the May 2, 1946, attempted breakout focusing on the trial of Miran Thompson, Sam Shockley, and Clarence Carnes. These three inmates were survivors of the six inmates involved in the attempted 1946 breakout in which two prison officers died, one from friendly fire from outside and one shot in a holding cell by an inmate. It appears the officer who died by inmate fire would have lived if he had been attended to sooner. Instead officers from other prisons and the U.S. marines were brought in to subdue the three men who were subsequently killed in the prison. Parts of the trial can be tedious reading as different witnesses give their versions as to what happened, but I imagine this is necessary in covering the trial. Judge Louis Goodman appeared to be prejudiced against the defense in his rulings making it difficult for the defendants' attorneys to try the case. I thought William Sullivan, the attorney for Sam Shockley, made a great summation in defense of his client's life by pointing out the deplorable conditions Sam Shockley had to endure at the prison which further diminished the eight-year-old mentality of this man. On the other hand Shockley did encourage inmate Joseph Cretzer to shoot the guards which were secluded in a prison cell. Both Shockley and inmate Miran Thompson were executed in December of 1948, two years after the trial. Inmate Joseph Carnes was spared his life for saving the lives of several prison guards by not carrying out Cretzer's order to finish off the guards in the holding cell. I would suggest you first read Battle at Alcatraz first, and then follow up with this book, Alcatraz Justice. Both are riveting reads.