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Sheriff Fay F. Brown’s Badge: Bad Boy of Arlington

April 15, 2020 by Jim Potter 10 Comments

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· Sheriff Fay F. Brown’s Badge: Bad Boy of Arlington·

*

It was July 19, 1927. Truman Reynolds, 18, had rubbed Reno County Sheriff Fay F. Brown the wrong way ever since the boy was fifteen-years-old. The youth, who the local paper had dubbed the “Bad Boy of Arlington,” (located 15 miles SW of Hutchinson) was pure trouble.

*

Sheriff Fay Brown was sick in bed on the second floor of his residence when, shortly before midnight, he heard a noise on the west side of the jail building. He peered through a window to see four men walking away from the bastille.

Brown grabbed his gun and rushed downstairs in time to thwart the escape of three prisoners. To the sheriff’s surprise, ten jailbirds had already flown the coop. They had forced open the heavy steel door of the bull pen. Then they had dug out a block in the thick west wall and crawled through to the outside.

Sheriff Brown immediately alerted the city police force and reformatory officers so that a search of the countryside could be started. Bloodhounds from the reformatory would help in the hunt.

*

After a sleepless night and a long day of searching for escapees, four prisoners were recaptured. Unfortunately, Truman Reynolds was still loose.

“It doesn’t make sense,” said Fay Brown to his undersheriff, Ed Cunningham, “all of them, with the exception of Reynolds, were in on minor offenses.”

“Criminals don’t always make sense, especially when they’re locked up,” reminded Ed. “You know that. Like your dog, some people need to get outside every day or they go stir crazy.”

“The transient train riders would have been free in a few more days,” said Fay. “Now they’ll be facing years in prison.”

“We know who’s behind this wholesale jail escape,” said Ed.

Disgustingly, as though he was spitting poisoned tobacco, two words erupted from Fay’s contorted face, “Truman Reynolds.”

“The Bad Boy of Arlington strikes again,” announced Ed.

Fay shook his head. “Reynolds should have been doing time in the penitentiary long ago. If there’s any good news from this, now we don’t need witnesses signing complaints, swearing that Reynolds destroyed property, issued bad checks, stole someone’s automobile tires, or car.”

“We’ll get him, Fay,” said Ed. “We’ll receive a wire or a phone call. Truman’s a mean drunk. Someday he’ll have a run-in with someone bigger and meaner, and whether he’s dead or alive, we’ll be contacted. Even when Truman’s sober, he’s not smart enough to stay out of trouble.”

“Ed,” said Fay, “We’ve worked together a long time, you know that I rarely hold a grudge against someone I’ve arrested.”

“That’s true, Fay,” agreed the undersheriff, “but Truman Reynolds is a different story, isn’t he?”

“He’s rubbed me the wrong way from the day we jailed him and Bert VanAuken for maliciously destroying Castleton’s town pump,” said Fay. “They were on their drunken way home from a barn dance and decided to have some fun. Paroling Reynolds to his father’s care for that Arlington store robbery didn’t slow him down one bit, and whoever thought the Kansas National Guard could change him, must have been drinking denatured alcohol.”

“He’s been a lot of trouble for the people of Arlington and the rest of the county,” echoed Ed. “He gets his money any way he can, whether it’s honest or dishonest, and he’s always feeling sorry for himself. Poor me.”

“Cora and I have been around him more than we like,” said Fay, thinking of all the jail-time Reynolds had spent waiting for various district court trials.

“We’ll get him back and send him to the Big House where he belongs,” said Ed. “The inmates working the coal mine are required to dig ten tons of coal a week for their room and board.”

“Seeing Reynolds digging coal might be worth the long trip to Lansing,” said Fay.

“Your personal reward of $25 will help, Fay, but you didn’t need to do that.”

“I want him bad,” said Fay. “When Jess was sheriff, we must have arrested Reynolds six times for bad checks. I don’t think that boy’s ever had a conscience. He wears the title, ‘bad check artist’, as though he’s won a blue ribbon at the state fair.”

“No moral compass,” summarized Ed.

*

Cora had watched her husband slowly recover from his illness. He was still sick about the wholesale jail escape, and he was embarrassed. Every day, Fay wanted Truman Reynolds caught. The reward postcards that Fay had mailed describing Reynolds, had caused a few chiefs and sheriffs across the country to contact him, but each time the lawmen eventually concluded a recent arrestee wasn’t the Bad Boy of Arlington.

At least Bill Coyle hadn’t been downstairs during the mass escape, thought Cora. That would have made matters even worse. Coyle had started eating again after another hunger strike, but he still demanded he be reunited with the prisoners downstairs, no doubt in order to increase his chances of escaping. Fay had told the disagreeable prisoner, confined to the upper pen, that whether the man ever ate another bite of food again, wouldn’t bother Fay one bit. Coyle was not being moved.

Cora wasn’t born yesterday. She knew she could help her husband. As a former long-time telephone operator, Cora reached out to her considerable community resources in order to help capture Reynolds. She had every Bell Telephone employee in Hutchinson, and people she knew at other phone exchanges, on high alert. If Reynolds tried to contact his parents in Arlington, Cora would know about it.

*

On August 8, 1927, three weeks after the wholesale escape, Cora received a phone call from a friend. A minute later, Cora called to her husband.

“There’s a telephone call for you,” shouted Cora. As she waited for Fay, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and smiled.

“Who is it?” asked Fay, as he reached for the phone.

“Something about a telegram being sent from Joplin, Missouri, to Arlington, Kansas,” said Cora, trying to keep a blank, neutral look on her face.

Cora observed Fay as he listened to the caller. Before her eyes, Cora watched Fay rejuvenate. He exhaled. He relaxed. She recognized this person, a younger, confident man who she had known three weeks earlier.

While remaining on the call, Fay and Cora looked at one another eye-to-eye. Fay nodded at her, mouthed the words ‘thank you.’ He was grateful for the turn of events that Cora had put in motion. Hopefully, after Fay’s call to Joplin, Truman Reynolds would soon be caught and locked up in a secure Missouri jail cell.

Immediately after Fay put the phone down, Cora asked, “Who gets the $25 reward?”

“Let’s not count our chickens before they’re hatched,” replied Fay.

“Well, if he’s caught, who gets the money?” she continued.

“Whoever arrests him,” replied Fay.

“What about the operator who’s making it possible for the Joplin officers to locate him?” asked Cora. “She’s the one who wrote down his address.”

“Right now, I’m feeling generous,” said Fay, “but do you think we can afford another $25 out of our monthly pay for a second reward?”

“It’s a lot of money to be throwing around,” said Cora. “I’m willing to make the financial sacrifice this one time, but let’s not make it a habit. If there’s a next time, let’s give the county commissioners the opportunity to raise a reward.”

“Agreed,” replied Fay. “I was feeling bad about his escape. Let me call Joplin. It’s time for our bad boy to shovel coal at the Big House. It may not help him, but it sure will help me.

*

Until next time, happy writing and reading.

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Comments

  1. Larry Kruckman says

    Nice writing, nice reading. Hope you and Alex are coping well. Larry

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      Larry, thanks for the comment. Yes, we’re doing fine, hunkered down at Sandhenge. The solitary life isn’t a big change for either one of us. How about you two? I keep waiting for an armed robbery with a description of the suspects as wearing surgical masks. Stay safe. Have fun. Write! Jim

      Reply
  2. Alex says

    Ha! Way to go, Cora!

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      Yes, Cora used her resources to help her man.

      Reply
  3. Jim says

    Very interesting. I certainly had a couple of “Bad Boy of Arlington” types. One was eventually killed in a police pursuit. The other turned his life around, and looked me up to confess his repentance and asked for forgiveness. I had to fight the second guy twice and got whipped thoroughly. He was an iron worker. Goon one Jim.

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      Jim, thanks for reading and commenting. Glad he didn’t whip you too badly or you wouldn’t be here.
      By the way, Truman Reynolds was murdered in in the 1950’s by his ex-step-son who was tired of Reynolds abusing the boy’s foster mother (ex-wife of Truman). The 17-year-old boy shot him about ten times with a .22 rifle.

      Reply
  4. Tom says

    Jim, Very interesting story about the Bad Boy. Tom

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      Thanks, Tom.

      Reply
  5. Marilyn Bolton says

    Good read, Jim. Thank you yet again!!

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      Thank you, Marilyn!

      Reply

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Karleen Wilson-Moon

Terrific story relevant to today’s social issues . . . well written . . . likable characters . . . insightful perspective from an insider in law enforcement.

Larry Kruckman, anthropologist

Jim Potter displays ethnographic skills in Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery, creating vivid scenes and fascinating characters. The Greeks had a word for subcultures and people’s behavior: ‘ethos,’ or ‘ways of being.’ In colorful, sometimes marvelous detail, this novel captures various people and settings . . . the ethos of rural Kansas: a… Read more “Larry Kruckman, anthropologist”

Steve Becker

I’m impressed. It was an excellent read. . . . I hope you continue with more projects in the future.

Morgan Penner

Taking Back the Bullet is a novel that provides the reader with a window into the world of law enforcement. As the novel unfolds, the reader is able to see how split-second decisions alter the lives of the main characters in the story. Taking Back the Bullet also explores how humanity is impacted by mental… Read more “Morgan Penner”

Sean McArdle, Winchester, England

Retired police officer Potter’s novel centers on very disparate characters and through the tried and tested means of gradually introducing each one, builds a sense of anticipation about what is going to happen to them. This often used methodology is not easy to do well but is superbly handled by Potter who knows how to… Read more “Sean McArdle, Winchester, England”

Jane Holzrichter

I finished it last night around midnight. What a great piece of work. It kept me intrigued all the way to the end.

Deb Theis, LSCSW, clinical therapist/hypnotherapist

Jim Potter has done it again! After his book, Cop in the Classroom: Lessons I’ve Learned, Tales I’ve Told, Jim has written another great work. In Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery, Jim Potter takes us on an insightful journey into the lives and relationships of numerous characters. Jim is such a talented storyteller… Read more “Deb Theis, LSCSW, clinical therapist/hypnotherapist”

Diana Dester

Good story line, building the characters along the way. Great job!

Wynona Winn, PhD, retired school superintendent

Three main characters walk different paths but with the same destination – each coping with his or her self-discovery, self-identity, and self-realization. Much like their earlier counterparts – Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield – their journeys are often joyous, often tedious and often tragic.

Judy Hawk

. . . I was impressed with the Native American information as well as the depth of character development . . . .

John & Cindy Morrill, 20 years Air Force retired, 17 years law enforcement

I enjoyed your book. When I am looking for a new read, I always read the first page, last page and choose a random page somewhere in the middle before I decide to buy it. You had me on all three pages. I also like reading a book where you can relate to the characters… Read more “John & Cindy Morrill, 20 years Air Force retired, 17 years law enforcement”

Sheryl Remar

I enjoyed the different stories of this book because Tom, James, and Suanna, the three main characters, represent in their own way the different struggles with themselves and society’s idea of what is normal.

Rebecca Schillaci

As a former law enforcement officer, I found the story very relatable as it details the life of a law enforcement officer and the struggles some face throughout their careers. . . Taking Back the Bullet is a journey of understanding, respect, and forgiveness . . .

Dennis Perrin, educator

Masterful storytelling, exquisite character development, so real as to HURT and HOPE, a real page turner. Begs for stage, screenwriters, and visual episodic development a.k.a. TV series . . . Thanks Jim Potter for telling it like it is AND providing us visions of how it could be. Well done!

Rebecca from Proud Police Wife

Taking Back the Bullet is an emotional, yet captivating novel. Jim Potter does a superb job of intertwining each character and putting their individual identities on display. All law enforcement storylines are a true reflection of Potter’s years as a police officer because they are realistic and relatable. This is a book I highly recommend.

Denise Low, author of Jackalope (Red Mountain Press)

Jim Potter is a cop, retired, but he brings deep understanding of this job to his novel Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery. This layered novel has literary dimensions as characters explore crisis situations. Congratulations to this fine writer for his debut novel.

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