Joseph Bowers Joseph Bowers Joseph "Dutch" Bowers (December 13, 1896 – April 27, 1936) was the first man to attempt an escape from Alcatraz prison. On 27 April 1936, convict Henry Larry claims to have watched Bowers, who was feeding seagulls, stack some empty barrels and climb up next to the fence so he could retrieve a bit of food which had fallen on the barbed wire. He stood there feeding the birds for several minutes until a tower guard turned, saw him atop the fence, and fired on the convict. Bowers fell seventy feet to his death on the rocks below.
Prison escape Mexico, Belgium, Germany and Austria, the philosophy of the law holds that it is human nature to want to escape. In those countries, escapees who do not break any other laws are not charged for anything and no extra time is added to their sentence. However, in People's Republic of China, Korea, Russia and Mexico, officers are required to shoot and kill prisoners attempting to escape, and an escape is illegal if violence is used against prison personnel or property, or if prison inmates or officials aid the escape. Lists: Prison escape A prison escape (referred as a bust out,