Criminal. A bank robber from Louisville, Kentucky, Coy was serving a twenty-five year prison sentence when he was sent to Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in 1938. While on the island, he began planning a major escape attempt with fellow inmates Joseph Cretzer, Marvin Hubbard, Sam Shockley, Myron Thompson, and Clarence Carnes. On May 2, 1946, with Coy as their leader, the inmates set their plans in motion and quickly took over the main cellblock and locked up most of the prison's guards before any alarm was sounded. In what became known as the "Battle for Alcatraz," the two day fight finally came to an end after Thompson, Carnes, and Shockley retreated back to their cells to be captured while Coy, Cretzer, and Hubbard were shot and killed in a utility corridor. In addition to the three inmates, prison guards Harold Stites and William Miller were also killed. With his body being unclaimed, Coy was buried in an unmarked grave in Colma.
Criminal. A bank robber from Louisville, Kentucky, Coy was serving a twenty-five year prison sentence when he was sent to Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in 1938. While on the island, he began planning a major escape attempt with fellow inmates Joseph Cretzer, Marvin Hubbard, Sam Shockley, Myron Thompson, and Clarence Carnes. On May 2, 1946, with Coy as their leader, the inmates set their plans in motion and quickly took over the main cellblock and locked up most of the prison's guards before any alarm was sounded. In what became known as the "Battle for Alcatraz," the two day fight finally came to an end after Thompson, Carnes, and Shockley retreated back to their cells to be captured while Coy, Cretzer, and Hubbard were shot and killed in a utility corridor. In addition to the three inmates, prison guards Harold Stites and William Miller were also killed. With his body being unclaimed, Coy was buried in an unmarked grave in Colma.
Bio by: G.Photographer
Gravesite Details
Section LRow 10Space 6Grave 192
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