NO JUSTICE IN A POUND OF FLESH HERE

I have to agree with Bob on this one. Sending this guy back to the joint would serve only one purpose – a deterrent to escapes. But in this case it really wouldn’t serve as much of a deterrent since the escapee/parole absconder remained on the lam for over 40 years.

ON THE LAM A LONG TIME
By Bob Walsh

PACOVILLA Corrections blog
March 27, 2010

You just never know who your neighbors are.

In 1951 Frank Dryman shot a man seven times in the back in a Montana oil town. He confessed. He was convicted and sentenced to die on the mobile gallows the state used at the time. The verdict was thrown out because of extensive local publicity. Instead Dryman received life at hard labor. He served 14 years and was paroled. After two years on parole he absconded.

He has been living as Victor Houston in Arizona. He runs small wedding chapel and sells cacti and other nick-nacks to tourists. In all that time he has had one speeding ticket. He was also a sign painter, a trade he learned in prison. He had a daughter and helped raise a stepdaughter.

His victim had a grandson who was born two years after his death. The grandson was bothered by the fact that his grandfather's murderer had not served his full sentence and started to look for him. He wasn't all that hard to find as it turns out. A private investigator located him. He was using his real social security number.

He is now old and feeble. Almost blind. He has survived a go-around with prostate cancer. He could no longer drive, friends brought him food.

He waived extradition and will be picked up in a couple of days by the Montana authorities.

I admit to being of two minds on this one. He shot a man in the back, one while he was running, six more while laying on the ground. However, he served his time in prison. He did take off on parole but appears to have led an exemplary life since then. I admit to not being wild about the criminal justice system in Mexico, but their law does have one interesting item in it. If you escape custody and stay out of official notice for 25 years, they officially let the matter drop. I'm not sure that would be a bad thing to do in this case.