Latest news with #Hopkins
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
An old ex-con recalls his days at Alcatraz. His biggest complaint: ‘Boredom'
There are only two people left in the world who really know what it was like to be a prisoner on Alcatraz, the legendary island in San Francisco Bay. One is Charlie Hopkins, who lives in Florida. The other is William Baker, who lives in Toledo, Ohio, and is spending the summer in San Francisco. Hopkins, a kidnapper and robber who spent three years on Alcatraz, is 93. Baker, a counterfeiter and escape artist, spent four. Baker is 92. 'As far as I know, we are the last two Alcatraz prisoners still around,' Baker says. Hopkins was interviewed on BBC in May at his home in Florida. I had lunch with Baker last week at Sam's Grill on Bush Street. Baker is spending a lot of the time these days on Alcatraz, where he appears at the bookstore on the island. He's there to sign his book — 'Alcatraz #1259,' the story of his life, which is mostly a story of 30 years behind bars. 'I guess you might say I'm a career criminal,' he writes. He's also a rarity: a survivor, a convict who managed to make crime pay. When he arrived at Alcatraz in the winter of 1957, he was a 23-year-old tough guy — 'a bad boy' with a reputation as a troublemaker, a jailhouse rioter, someone who was always trying to escape. He nearly got away more than once. Almost, not quite. 'You could see freedom,' he said of one near escape. At Alcatraz he got a job making gloves. But he learned another trade as well. This one was counterfeiting payroll checks, which he learned from Courtney Taylor, a convict who was the master of the trade. After Alcatraz, Baker spent years working with payroll checks. He made a good living, too. 'I'm the best counterfeit check casher there is,' he wrote. But technology and computers tripped him up, and he spent his post-Alcatraz years in other prisons. But then he turned to another trade he learned in prisons. He became a writer. 'I did always want to write,' he told me over lunch. He took creative writing courses at a South Dakota prison and began to write short stories. One of his stories, 'The Old Man and the Tree,' won first place in a nationwide prison writing contest. When his prison days were over and he was paroled in 2011, he wrote 'Alcatraz #1259' and sent it to the Park Service to have it approved for sale. Marcus Koenen, the supervising ranger at the time, liked it. There are lots of Alcatraz books, but Baker's has the ring of an insider, the reality of prison life. The book is a good read and a bestseller, too. Baker published it himself, and the Golden Gate Conservancy, a park service partner, handles sales. Baker is on hand three days a week to sign autographs and pose for pictures. He's living history, the Alcatraz legend in person. His book has done well. He's sold thousands of copies. 'We sold 302 on Memorial Day alone,' he said. 'Not bad.' 'I do this trip because I need the money,' he said. 'I've got a wife and a house and a dog to support. I'd sell my book on the street if I had to.' Baker is a bit gaunt. He wears thick glasses, and his hand trembles a bit. But he still has a bit of that tough kid who first landed on the Rock years ago. To celebrate a San Francisco lunch, he bought a brand new Stetson Stratoliner hat, the kind Howard Hughes liked. A new coat, too. But never mind the new clothes. We talked prison. What was the worst thing about Alcatraz? 'The boredom,' Baker said, 'Being locked up with nothing to do. The routine. Every day was the same. Not having freedom. But a writer can't write about boredom. So I wrote about people.' He wrote about Robert Stroud, the Birdman. Baker didn't know him; Stroud was in solitary. But he'd see him. Stroud was a prison hero but something else, a presence. He describes an encounter: 'What I saw in that brief moment was a dark cell with a gray shadow of a man peering out at me with bright white eyes streaked with the coal fires of hell.' Baker knew Roland Simcox, who was quiet, polite and 'a cold-blooded killer' who fatally stabbed another inmate. 'He killed him in the shower room in cold blood with a guard looking straight at him,' Baker recalled. That one stuck in Baker's memory. 'The guard threw a roll of toilet paper at him and yelled, 'Hey, break it up.'' Escape? 'Everybody talked about it all the time,' Baker said, 'but they didn't do it.' One friend of Baker's who did try was Aaron Burgett, who was involved in a prison liquor escapade and played baseball in the yard. One day on garbage detail Burgett and Clyde Johnson, another prisoner, overpowered a guard and jumped in the bay. They'd made flotation devices, but they weren't good enough. Johnson was caught and Burgett drowned. 'They found his body but his soul was long gone,' Baker wrote. Alcatraz is in the news these days. President Donald Trump is thinking of turning the island back into a prison. Is that possible? Thirty years as a prisoner made Baker guarded about prison policy. 'I don't know,' he said. 'It would be very expensive. It's crumbling, too. The last escapers used a spoon to get away. And they never came back. Besides, they already have a high-tech maximum security prison in Colorado.' They call it the Alcatraz of the Rockies and Baker described it in detail, the cells, the security, the exercise yard built like a pit where all an inmate can see is the sky. Nothing else.
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
DeAndre Hopkins has seemingly found the fountain of youth at Ravens OTAs
DeAndre Hopkins has seemingly found the fountain of youth at Ravens OTAs It's early, but DeAndre Hopkins is already one of the nice surprises from the Ravens' summer workouts. There can't be any other logical explanation. There must be a fountain of youth in Charm City. Its river must flow through the Baltimore Ravens headquarters. How else could Ed Reed still perform at an elite level well into his mid-thirties? How is it possible that Ray Lewis could ignore his body's injury and spearhead a Super Bowl run at 37? Maybe the fountain isn't available to everyone. Still, it's fair to ask why John Harbaugh turns 63 in September, and he still doesn't look a day over 35. Last season, Derrick Henry, at 30, ran for 1,921 yards and a league-leading 16 rushing touchdowns. He added 193 yards and two more touchdowns on 19 receptions. Don't look now, but DeAndre Hopkins is also turning back the clock. DeAndre Hopkins's first impression at Ravens OTAs has been a good one. Look, it's only May. Yes, we're only talking about OTAs, but Hopkins is impressing early. On Day 2 of Ravens OTAs, he clocked in at 20 miles per hour, alongside Marquise Robinson and Tez Walker. Yes, we're talking about guys running around in non-contact drills with shorts on, but let's be honest. That's relatively interesting. Hopkins turns 33 years old on June 6th. This could turn out to be something special because Baltimore doesn't need him to be a workhorse. They have Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman for that, but how does one ignore the sideline catch we all witnessed on the Ravens' social media channels? For now, we'll temper the excitement. It's too early to name him a finalist for the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year Award, but he seems like he has an ax to grind and something to prove. Knowing everything we know about him, it seems wise to jot down a few notes and revisit later. Again, it's early, but so far, so good for the old man. He's been impressive, and that's been a consistent discussion at the Under Armour Performance Center.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Plans for new Burger King restaurant in Gwent town
A drive-thru Burger King restaurant could be coming to a Gwent town and be part of an overall development that creates over 60 jobs in the town. At Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council's Planning committee on Thursday, June 5, councillors will decide a planning application by Starburst limited for a drive through Burger King, a pizza restaurant/takeaway and a tanning 'shop' on land at Blaina Road in Brynmawr. Provision for 30 parking spaces is included in the scheme which includes four electric vehicle charging points. A number of objections have been raised against the proposal. These were on the grounds that there are already 15 fast food restaurants and takeaways in the town; that the development would contribute to the rise in child obesity, as well as cause anti-social behaviour. Objectors also point out there are 10 tanning salons within a 10 mile radius of Brynmawr. The report by development management team manager Steph Hopkins. notes that Brynmawr Town Council objected to the proposal. This is due to traffic congestion already in the area and that the development if approved would: 'cause further chaos' for motorists and pedestrians. The town council were also under the impression that this land at was intended for leisure purposes. The report shows that an outline planning to build 25 homes and a drive through restaurant at the site were approved back in 2018. A further application providing details for a drive-through Costa Coffee shop was approved in 2019. But since 2020 no further progress has been made to develop the site. Mrs Hopkins said: 'It is acknowledged that the proposal is a departure from the Local Development Plan (LDP). 'There has been no interest from residential developers during the lifetime of the current LDP, a time period spanning 13 years, despite the fact there has been outline planning permission on the site for residential development since 2018.' Mrs Hopkins adds that it is 'worth noting' by councillors that the site's allocation for housing in the current LDP is not going to be part of the new replacement LDP. Mrs Hopkins continued: 'Nevertheless, members must weigh up the land use allocation of housing against the proposal of a drive-through/restaurant, pizza restaurant/takeaway and a tanning salon. 'With the exception of the land use allocation, the scheme broadly complies with policy. 'This must be weighed up against the strict adherence to a policy that requires only housing on the site.' Mrs Hopkins concludes: 'It is considered that on balance, the development proposal would not have an unacceptable impact on the character, appearance or amenity of surrounding area and wider landscape, or the safe, effective and efficient use of the highway network.' Due to this Mrs Hopkins will recommend that councillors approve the planning application.
South Wales Argus
2 days ago
- Business
- South Wales Argus
Plans for new drive-thru Burger King restaurant in Brynmawr
At Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council's Planning committee on Thursday, June 5, councillors will decide a planning application by Starburst limited for a drive through Burger King, a pizza restaurant/takeaway and a tanning 'shop' on land at Blaina Road in Brynmawr. Provision for 30 parking spaces is included in the scheme which includes four electric vehicle charging points. A number of objections have been raised against the proposal. These were on the grounds that there are already 15 fast food restaurants and takeaways in the town; that the development would contribute to the rise in child obesity, as well as cause anti-social behaviour. Objectors also point out there are 10 tanning salons within a 10 mile radius of Brynmawr. The report by development management team manager Steph Hopkins. notes that Brynmawr Town Council objected to the proposal. This is due to traffic congestion already in the area and that the development if approved would: 'cause further chaos' for motorists and pedestrians. The town council were also under the impression that this land at was intended for leisure purposes. The report shows that an outline planning to build 25 homes and a drive through restaurant at the site were approved back in 2018. A further application providing details for a drive-through Costa Coffee shop was approved in 2019. But since 2020 no further progress has been made to develop the site. Mrs Hopkins said: 'It is acknowledged that the proposal is a departure from the Local Development Plan (LDP). 'There has been no interest from residential developers during the lifetime of the current LDP, a time period spanning 13 years, despite the fact there has been outline planning permission on the site for residential development since 2018.' Mrs Hopkins adds that it is 'worth noting' by councillors that the site's allocation for housing in the current LDP is not going to be part of the new replacement LDP. Mrs Hopkins continued: 'Nevertheless, members must weigh up the land use allocation of housing against the proposal of a drive-through/restaurant, pizza restaurant/takeaway and a tanning salon. 'With the exception of the land use allocation, the scheme broadly complies with policy. 'This must be weighed up against the strict adherence to a policy that requires only housing on the site.' Mrs Hopkins concludes: 'It is considered that on balance, the development proposal would not have an unacceptable impact on the character, appearance or amenity of surrounding area and wider landscape, or the safe, effective and efficient use of the highway network.' Due to this Mrs Hopkins will recommend that councillors approve the planning application.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Write-in votes in Lackawanna County add candidates in general election
Write-in votes cast in the May 20 primary throughout Lackawanna County will likely add several candidates to ballots for various offices in the Nov. 4 general election, county elections Director Beth Hopkins said Thursday. The Lackawanna County Department of Elections and Voter Registration recently completed a count of the 22,669 write-in votes cast in the primary. According to the department, the minimum numbers of write-in votes needed to produce a winning candidate were: 250 for a countywide office; 100 for a Scranton or Carbondale city office; 10 for a borough or township office; 10 for a municipal judge of elections post; and five for a municipal inspector of elections. More than one person might meet or exceed the write-in threshold for any given office, but only the top write-in vote-getter in a race wins the write-in nomination, Hopkins said. Having 22,669 write-in votes is a relatively large amount, but not necessarily unusual in an election with nominations for municipal judge of election and inspector of election posts up for grabs throughout the county, Hopkins said. Many of those getting written in for these elections posts already work at polling places and likely would accept the write-in nominations, she said. Candidates in other races scoring sizable numbers of write-in votes also did not occur by happenstance. 'It seems like they were actively running a write-in campaign,' and probably would accept their nominations, Hopkins said of some candidates. Some of the results of write-in voting include: Lackawanna County sheriff: Glenn Capman received 1,122 Republican write-in votes to win the GOP nomination. He now could challenge incumbent Democratic Sheriff Mark McAndrew, who ran uncontested in his party primary. This sets up a rematch of 2021, when Capman ran unsuccessfully for sheriff as a Republican against McAndrew. Meanwhile, McAndrew received 808 Republican write-in votes in the May 20 primary, meaning he came in second and thus did not win a GOP nomination. There also were 316 other 'scattered' write-ins for sheriff. Lackawanna County register of wills: Vanessa Lienert received 1,183 Republican write-in votes to win the GOP nomination. She now could challenge in the general election incumbent Fran Kovaleski, who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary. Meanwhile, Kovaleski received 156 Republican write-in votes, which was not enough to top Lienert for the GOP nod. There also were 264 scattered write-ins for this office. Lackawanna County district attorney: Incumbent Brian Gallagher, who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary, received 1,302 Republican write-in votes to also win the GOP nomination. This means his name will appear on the general election ballot as having secured both Democratic and Republican nominations. Scranton City Council: Virgil Argenta, who lost in the Democratic primary for council, finishing last among six candidates with three nominations available, received 134 Republican write-in votes to win a GOP nomination. Sean McAndrew, who ran as a Democrat for council and won a nomination, coming in second of the six Democratic candidates, also secured a Republican nomination with 131 GOP write-in votes. He will appear on the general election as having both Democratic and Republican nominations. Republican Marc Pane was the lone candidate running for council in the primary and won a GOP nomination. The other two Democrats who won nominations in their party's primary were Patrick Flynn and incumbent Councilman Tom Schuster. The results of the primary and the write-in votes would set up a council contest for three seats in the general election between Flynn, McAndrew, Schuster, Pane and Argenta. The elections department will send letters to winning write-in candidates notifying them of their write-in nominations and giving them a deadline to accept or reject their nomination, Hopkins said. This date likely would be a few days before the Aug. 11 deadline for any candidate to withdraw from the election, she said. Meanwhile, Aug. 1 is the last day for independents to file nomination papers to run for whatever office they seek in the general election. So, the full makeup of the general election ballot won't become clear until around late August, after independents file and survive possible challenges to their paperwork, and after the winning write-in candidates accept their nominations, Hopkins said.
