Verrill Rapp, also Verrill Hersey Raap (-?) was an American criminal who was a convicted post office robber. A 1930 census mentioned him living in

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

and being 24 years old at the time. On August 11, 1934, he was transferred from McNeil Island to

Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or The Rock was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, the site of a ...

to become one of the first civilian inmates incarcerated there – sentenced to four years for assault on a police officer and breaking jail. He is best known for being the earliest prisoner to be paroled from Alcatraz in the spring of 1935. Upon leaving to stand trial on other charges, Rapp reported that Alcatraz was a place of "inhumane treatment" and that it was causing many inmates to go insane. This was widely reported in the press and marked the beginning of its sinister reputation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rapp, Verrill American robbers Inmates of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary American people convicted of assault 1900s births Year of birth uncertain Year of death missing People from Fresno, California