Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-04-22
Recoptured Conyicts Say They Meant
No Harm to Woman, Held s Hours

( SAN QUENTIN. Calf. April
q (AP).-Two small-time bur-
glars, who escaped from San
Quentin Prison and held a
roman hostage at knifepoint
Tor six hours at the end Of a
Fishing pier before surrendering
yesterday, say they we're bluff
ing.
I'VE really didn't want no
postage. Just a car to get
away" said Billy Joe Wright, rs.
Authenticated Mrs. Louise
Gschwend lprononnced Gish-
NendD agreed. II hope these
boys get a break, /" she declared.
rThey didn't hurt me. They
gave me q break"
II don't think they ever would
have killed me-" she added.
Was Scared at Beginning
At the beginning Of the or
deal. the 54-year-old woman
continued, Il was scared. ] felt
sick and I was faint. When /
almost tainted, one Of the boys
wrapped my coat around me-"
The convict who did that was
William D. Werner. "a.
Wright and Werner broke
away. from work parties out
side the bleak walls of the huge
prison 20 miles north of San
Francisco, Wright fleeing from
a grass-mowing party and
Werner from the prison quarry
with guards in hot pursuit.
( They slid along a fence until
they came to a wall and then
slipped between them. Failing
TO find a car. they ran down the
half-mile-long wharf that juts
into San Francisco Bay near the
prison entrance.
Fishing With Friend
Mrs. Gschwend, a beauty OPP
orator. was fishing there with
Doug Harrison, 81, a hotelman
and friend Of IS years. Her
husband, Walter, was working
as a hotel bellman. All live
IN San Francisco.
Mr.. Harrison recalled that
FLouise let out a scream and
! saw they had a knife at her
neck" He added that Wright
"told officers Don't come any
closer or Ill kill her; but /
think they were just blufing
all the time"
Wright and Werner, with
Mr.. Harrison carrying messages
between them and the guards.
demanded a speedboat with
plenty of gasoline and at
another time the keys to Mrs.
Gschwend's car and q half
hours start.
With guards blocking the
end of the pier and Coast
Guardsmen patroling OF the
pier by boat and in the air
with a helicopter, prison Off
cials refused and the stalemate
continued.
Finally Give Up
Finally, the prisoners gave
up when Marin County prose-
cutor William Weissich prom
Used not to prosecute them
for escaping and they we're
given a. chance to tell their
grievances to newspapermen.
Mr.. Weissich later said. IN
keep my word, but it breaks my
prosecutors heart to do it.
Warden Fred r. Dickson said
the two convicts would go.
before a prison disciplinary
committee, but assured them
mo one (of your fellow prison.
ei'S) will beat you up and no
one is going to lock you in a.
padded cell" An associate
warden said other prisoners
think that holding a woman
hostage would work against all
of them.
Z Werner had a San Quentin
dinner knife sharpened to al
razor edge and Wright armed
himself with Mr.. Harrison'sI
fishing knife, but the hotelman
said that ION the whole, they
were real nice to us. They
would swear at the officers.
They swore at us just once and
then they apologized."
Wright was asked what he
would have done if guards had
rushed the end Of the pier
I'VE would just have given up"
he replied. I'VE didn't want
to harm them people"
Both Wright and Werner told
newspapermen they had gotten
bad breaks, Wright contendlng
his parole was revoked because
he got into fight with a po-
lceman's relative.
Werner, whose home is at
MERGED. Calf, was sentenced
from Fresno County. Wright,
who was born at Boswell, Okla.
was sentenced from Weaver
vile in Trinity County.