The Bank Heist Gone Wrong
After an attempted robbery of the First Bank of White Bluffs, the one man who stayed to stand trial is found guilty.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The jury brought in a verdict of guilty against E. L. Porter who was tried this week in Pasco for attempting to blow the safe in the First Bank of White Bluffs about 15 months ago. The jury deliberated less than an hour. Attorneys for Porter have indicated that they intend to appeal to the Supreme Court. John Morrison and John Burke, who were with Porter on the night of the crime and who escaped from jail in Pasco about a month ago, apparently have made good their getaway as the officers have so far been unable to get any trace of them. Porter had an opportunity to escape with the other two but he evidently figured he could beat it and decided to stay and stand trial. Burke and Morrison were wanted for other crimes, and would have been immediately re-arrested had they been captured in this trip.
“Porter had an opportunity to escape with the other two but he evidently figured he could beat it and decided to stay and stand trial.”
Bank robberies in the early 1920s were often desperate affairs involving makeshift explosives and rudimentary security, a stark contrast to today's digital, automated financial crimes. While the tools of the trade have changed, the grim reality of a small town's bank being a target for criminals remains a recurring civic anxiety.
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