During his time at Leavenworth Penitentiary, he reared and sold birds and became a respected ornithologist, although regulations did not allow him to keep birds at Alcatraz, where he was incarcerated from 1942 to 1959.
Pada masanya di Leavenworth Penitentiary, ia mengumpulkan dan menjual burung-burung dan menjadi seorang ornitolog, namun karena peraturan, ia tak diperbolehkan untuk membawa burung-burung di Alcatraz, dimana ia dipindahkan dari 1942 sampai 1959.