Notable Inmates

Mexican Revolutionary

Ricard Flores Magon

1906 Established Partido Liberal Mexicano to oppose dictator Porfirio Diaz.

1906 Jailed in Yuma for violations of the Neutrality Act.

1922 Died under questionable circumstances at Leavenworth Penitentiary.

1946 Remains repatriated to Rotonda de los Hombres Ilustres in Mexico City.

Bandit Queen

Pearl Hart

1906 Along with Joe Boot, robbed the Globe to Florence stagecoach.

1906 Became a media sensation around the entire country.

1922 Sentenced to 5 years in Yuma.

1946 Used her feminine wiles with both prisoners and guards alike, pardoned after 2 years.

Jealous Rage

Phillip Lashley

  • Convict No. 1194
  • Age: 28
  • Occupation: Saddle Maker
  • Crime: Murder
  • Sentenced: June 1896

Phillip Lashley fell for Mrs. Maggie Jennings and didn’t like the fact that she had invited Private Saunders back to her mother’s house for ice cream. Phillip followed them there and pulled a gun on Private Saunders taking his life. To learn more, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.

Evidence Found

Guillermo Lisaldo

  • Convict No. 1856
  • Age: 27
  • Occupation: Laborer
  • Crime: Second-Degree Murder
  • Sentenced: March 1902 for 15 years

Guillermo Lisaldo’s girlfriend was found murdered in a house. The Sheriff found Lisaldo’s belt and memo book at the scene of the murder, but he was nowhere to be found. To learn more, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.

Mormon Prisoner

William Jordan Flake

Pioneer to Arizona in 1877

1884 Arrested for unlawful plural marriage. While many fled to Mexico to avoid prosecution, Flake challenged the Edmunds Act calling it a "mockery, a travesty on justice." Served 6 months in prison

Flake lived out his days as a respected community leader and cattleman in Snowflake, AZ. with his two wives, Prudence and Lucy, and their 20 children.

Heartbreaker

Elena Estrada

A crime of passion some would say...

Elena Estrada was sentenced to seven years for manslaughter, when she stabbed her unfaithful lover, then cut open his chest, pulled out his heart, and threw the bloody mass into his face.

Model Inmate

Es-Kay-Da-Pany

  • Convict No. 985
  • Age: 28
  • Occupation: Laborer
  • Crime: Murder
  • Sentence: June 1894 for 25 years

Hard labor was an essential part of the rehabilitation process at the Yuma Territorial Prison. Es-Kay-Da-Pany was known as a violent criminal, but prison records show that he was a model inmate without any noted infractions. He tended the garden at the Prison and ran into a mishap where he lost his life. To learn more, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.

Cowboy to Convict

John Gatlan

  • Convict No. 1504
  • Age: 21
  • Occupation: Cattleman
  • Crime: Grand Larceny
  • Sentenced: June 1899 for 2 years

John Gatlan was a cattleman and laborer who decided that burglary might be a better line of work. Soon after, John was sentenced to one year at the Yuma Territorial Prison and spent 18 days in the dark cell. To learn more about the Prisoners, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.

The Fast Gun

“Buckskin” Frank Leslie

Worked for Wyatt Earp at the Oriental Bar - Tombstone, Arizona.

Killed Billy Clairborne of the Clanton Gang.

Killed his girlfriend in a drunken rage.

Wyatt Earp was reputed to have said: " Leslie was the only man who could compare to Doc Holiday's blinding speed and accuracy with a six gun."

Hero of the Gates Riot

Barney K. Riggs

Sentenced to life for killing a man who was involved with his wife.

Rescued Superintendent Gates from certain death during the Gates Riots.

Pardoned by Governor Sulick on December 31, 1887.

Fatally shot by Buck Chadborne at Fort Stockton, Texas - 1902.

The Drifter

Walter Lewis

  • Convict No. 1060
  • Age: 28
  • Occupation: Clerk
  • Crime: Burglary 2nd Degree
  • Sentenced: May 1895 for 3 years

Walter was given a three year sentence for burglary after spending years drifting across country trying to reach California. During his stay at the Yuma Territorial Prison, Walter was placed in the dark cell twice. To learn more, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.

Two Times the Charm

Edward Lopez

  • Convict: No. 129
  • Age: 35
  • Occupation: Saddle Maker
  • Crime: Grand Larceny
  • Sentence Date: November 1882 for 4 years

Edward Lopez was imprisoned at the Yuma Territorial Prison twice. Edward Lopez was not the first convict to spend multiple sentences behind prison walls, but what made his unique was that he was admitted into the Yuma Territorial Prison on November 26th both times. To read more, visit the Yuma Territorial Prison.