Katherine Ann Power
Encyclopedia
Katherine Ann Power is an American ex-convict
and long-time fugitive
, who, along with her fellow student and accomplice Susan Edith Saxe
, was placed on the Federal Bureau of Investigation
's Most Wanted Fugitives
list in 1970. The two participated in robberies at a Massachusetts National Guard
armory
and a bank in Brighton, Massachusetts
where Boston police officer Walter Schroeder was shot and killed. Power remained at large for 23 years.
A native of Colorado
, Power turned herself over to authorities in 1993 after starting a new life in Oregon
. She was imprisoned in Massachusetts for six years before being released on 14-years' probation. While in prison, Power completed her bachelors degree and, after her release, earned a masters degree at Oregon State University
. As of 2008, she resided in the Boston area.
. Her parents, Winfield and Marjorie, raised their Irish
Catholic
middle-class family on Winfield’s salary as a bank credit manager and Marjorie's income as a registered nurse. She became a Girl Scout
and won a scholarship to Marycrest Girls High School
, a Catholic school in Colorado. While in high school, she won a Betty Crocker
cooking award, wrote a regular column for the Denver Post, graduated as valedictorian
and received a full scholarship to Brandeis University
, a liberal arts
school in Waltham, Massachusetts
.
In 1967, Power enrolled at Brandeis as a sociology
major and honor student at a time of anti-Vietnam War
protests at the school. She became known for wandering the campus braless and barefoot in an orange-colored smock
, for her attendance at Students for a Democratic Society
protest rallies and for her involvement in the Brandeis Strike Information Center. She and her room-mate Susan Saxe worked to organize student protests for a committee known as the National Student Strike Force. The two also became acquainted with fellow organizer Stanley Ray Bond
, an ex-convict and soldier attending classes at the university on a special program. He and Power became romantically involved.
. Bond introduced them to former convicts William Gilday and Robert Valeri and together the group plotted to rob the State Street Bank & Trust. On September 20, 1970, the group robbed a National Guard armory in Newburyport, Massachusetts
and took 400 rounds of ammunition. They also stole weapons and set fire to the facility, causing about $125,000 in damage.
Three days later, on September 23, 1970, the group robbed a bank in Brighton, Massachusetts, carrying handguns, a shotgun and a submachine gun. The first police officer on the scene, Boston police officer Walter Schroeder, was shot in the back by Gilday when he attempted to stop the robbery. He subsequently died from his wounds. The group escaped with $26,000 in cash that they planned to use to finance an overthrow of the federal government
. Power was behind the wheel of one of the two getaway vehicles.
While raiding her apartment after the bank robbery, police found evidence tying Power to both robberies. This included weapons, ammunition and a telephone switchboard
from the armory. Power's attorneys would subsequently blame her involvement in the robberies as the result of manipulation by her partner Bond.
and testified against Gilday. Valeri received a jail term of 25 years for the robbery, while Gilday received a life sentence. Power and Saxe eluded capture.
In November 1970, Power and Saxe became the sixteenth and seventeenth persons on the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitives list. At first, Power and Saxe traveled together, escaping arrest by hiding out in women’s communes. For part of this time, the two went to ground in Connecticut
and Power assumed the name Mae Kelly. Saxe was able to elude arrest until 1975, when she was captured in Philadelphia. She then served five years in prison.
Prior to her surrender in 1993, Power had last been seen in Kentucky
in 1974. In 1977, she assumed the alias Alice Louise Metzinger, taking the name from the birth certificate of an infant that had died the year before her birth. In 1979, moved west to Oregon and gave birth to a son, Jamie, by an unknown father.
As time went by, authorities received few tips regarding Power's location and she was eventually removed from the Most Wanted Fugitives list in 1984. The following year, she settled in the city of Lebanon
in Oregon's Willamette Valley
with her son Jamie and boyfriend Ron Duncan, a local meat cutter and bookkeeper. While living in Oregon, Power taught cooking classes at Linn-Benton Community College
in Albany
and worked at restaurants in Corvallis
and Eugene
. She reached the shortlist for the post of food writer for the Corvallis Gazette-Times
and became part-owner of Napoli Restaurant and Bakery restaurant in Eugene.
Power had suffered from clinical depression
since childhood and confided her fugitive status to her therapist Linda Carroll
. She developed the desire to stop living her life under her assumed name and, through therapy that included participation in the mock trial
of a soldier charged with killing civilians during the Vietnam War, she began to prepare for her surrender to the authorities. This included her decision to marry Duncan in 1992 and reveal her background to her friends.
, a prominent Boston lawyer. On September 15, 1993, she pleaded guilty to two counts of armed robbery and manslaughter
in Boston. At the time, her son Jamie was 14 years old and a freshman in high school, while Power was 44 years old.
Her husband, Ron Duncan, then adopted Jamie.
In court, Power made the following statement about officer Schroeder:
Power was sentenced to eight to twelve years in prison for the bank robbery, and five years and a $10,000 fine for the National Guard armory crimes. Additionally, judge Robert Banks of Suffolk County
Superior Court imposed a probation condition that Power could not profit from her crime. Banks remarked that the sentence negotiated was inadequate.
The second five years were to be served concurrently with the eight to twelve year sentence, with a possibility of parole
after five years. This probation condition also precluded her ability to profit directly or indirectly from telling her story. Power appealed this portion of the sentence on First Amendment grounds, but the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
rejected the argument and the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari.
In her only public statement, Power said:
. In March 1998, Power was eligible for parole after receiving time off for good behavior, but withdrew her request after opposition from the victim’s family.
On October 2, 1999, she was released from prison in Massachusetts
and placed on fourteen years of probation
after serving six years of her eight to twelve year sentence.
Fifty years old at the time of release, Power then returned to Oregon and the family she formed while a fugitive. Shortly after release she appeared at a public forum on peace at Willamette University
in Salem, Oregon
, where she questioned the “violent posture” of some people in the peace movement, including activist Philip Berrigan
.
Later, Power enrolled in graduate studies at Oregon State University in Corvallis, where she worked on a masters degree in interdisciplinary studies with focuses on writing, philosophy, and ethics. She also taught freshman composition for the English department. On May 10, 2001, she gave a poetry reading in Corvallis and graduated with her MAIS later that year. In September 2001, Katherine Ann Power represented the Oregon State philosophy department in a biotech lecture series. As of 2008, she worked for Cambridge Cares About AIDS in the Boston area.
. The television episode was a 1994 episode of Law & Order entitled White Rabbit which was loosely based on her case. In the show, her character is called Susan Forrest and she is found after money from the robbery turns up in a private safety deposit box after a robbery. William Kunstler
even appears in the episode playing himself as Forrest's lawyer. The fifth season episode aired on October 19, 1994. Later her story was the basis for Dana Spiotta’s novel, Eat the Document.
She is also part of David Racine's novel, Floating in a Most Peculiar Way.
Convict
A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison", sometimes referred to in slang as simply a "con". Convicts are often called prisoners or inmates. Persons convicted and sentenced to non-custodial sentences often are not termed...
and long-time fugitive
Fugitive
A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
, who, along with her fellow student and accomplice Susan Edith Saxe
Susan Edith Saxe
Susan Edith Saxe is one of only eight women ever to make the FBI's Most Wanted List. She was placed on the list in 1970, and remained on it for five years. A student of Brandeis University, Saxe was one of several young radicals who were placed on the FBI's Most Wanted list in the early 1970s...
, was placed on the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
's Most Wanted Fugitives
FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, and William Kinsey Hutchinson, International News Service Editor-in-Chief, who were discussing ways to promote capture of the...
list in 1970. The two participated in robberies at a Massachusetts National Guard
Massachusetts National Guard
The Massachusetts National Guard was founded as the Massachusetts Bay Colonial Militia on December 13, 1636, and contains the oldest units in the United States Army. It is currently headquartered in Milford, Massachusetts and commanded by Major General Joseph C...
armory
Armory (military)
An armory or armoury is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
and a bank in Brighton, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
where Boston police officer Walter Schroeder was shot and killed. Power remained at large for 23 years.
A native of Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, Power turned herself over to authorities in 1993 after starting a new life in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. She was imprisoned in Massachusetts for six years before being released on 14-years' probation. While in prison, Power completed her bachelors degree and, after her release, earned a masters degree at Oregon State University
Oregon State University
Oregon State University is a coeducational, public research university located in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees and a multitude of research opportunities. There are more than 200 academic degree programs offered through the...
. As of 2008, she resided in the Boston area.
Early life
Katherine Power grew up as the third of seven children in Denver, ColoradoDenver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
. Her parents, Winfield and Marjorie, raised their Irish
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
middle-class family on Winfield’s salary as a bank credit manager and Marjorie's income as a registered nurse. She became a Girl Scout
Girl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
and won a scholarship to Marycrest Girls High School
Marycrest Girls High School
Marycrest Girls High School was an all female high school located at 5320 Federal Boulevard in Denver, Colorado, United States. The school was a private Roman Catholic institution.-History:The Sisters of St...
, a Catholic school in Colorado. While in high school, she won a Betty Crocker
Betty Crocker
Betty Crocker AKA: batter witch is a cultural icon, as well as brand name and trademark of American Fortune 500 corporation General Mills. The name was first developed by the Washburn Crosby Company in 1921 as a way to give a personalized response to consumer product questions. The name Betty was...
cooking award, wrote a regular column for the Denver Post, graduated as valedictorian
Valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the student who delivers the closing or farewell statement at a graduation ceremony. Usually, the valedictorian is the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution...
and received a full scholarship to Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, a liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
school in Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, was an early center for the labor movement, and major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning,...
.
In 1967, Power enrolled at Brandeis as a sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
major and honor student at a time of anti-Vietnam War
Opposition to the Vietnam War
The movement against US involvment in the in Vietnam War began in the United States with demonstrations in 1964 and grew in strength in later years. The US became polarized between those who advocated continued involvement in Vietnam, and those who wanted peace. Peace movements consisted largely of...
protests at the school. She became known for wandering the campus braless and barefoot in an orange-colored smock
Smock-frock
A smock-frock or smock is an outer garment traditionally worn by rural workers, especially shepherds and waggoners, in parts of England and Wales from the early eighteenth century...
, for her attendance at Students for a Democratic Society
Students for a Democratic Society (1960 organization)
Students for a Democratic Society was a student activist movement in the United States that was one of the main iconic representations of the country's New Left. The organization developed and expanded rapidly in the mid-1960s before dissolving at its last convention in 1969...
protest rallies and for her involvement in the Brandeis Strike Information Center. She and her room-mate Susan Saxe worked to organize student protests for a committee known as the National Student Strike Force. The two also became acquainted with fellow organizer Stanley Ray Bond
Stanley Ray Bond
Stanley Ray Bond was a former convict who enrolled at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He was arrested for a bank robbery conducted to obtain funds for anti-Vietnam War efforts. Previously, he had served as a Private First Class in the United States Army in the Vietnam War...
, an ex-convict and soldier attending classes at the university on a special program. He and Power became romantically involved.
Protest and murder
Through their association with Bond, Power and Saxe became involved in a plot to arm the Black Panthers as a response to United States involvement in the Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Bond introduced them to former convicts William Gilday and Robert Valeri and together the group plotted to rob the State Street Bank & Trust. On September 20, 1970, the group robbed a National Guard armory in Newburyport, Massachusetts
Newburyport, Massachusetts
Newburyport is a small coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, 35 miles northeast of Boston. The population was 21,189 at the 2000 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island...
and took 400 rounds of ammunition. They also stole weapons and set fire to the facility, causing about $125,000 in damage.
Three days later, on September 23, 1970, the group robbed a bank in Brighton, Massachusetts, carrying handguns, a shotgun and a submachine gun. The first police officer on the scene, Boston police officer Walter Schroeder, was shot in the back by Gilday when he attempted to stop the robbery. He subsequently died from his wounds. The group escaped with $26,000 in cash that they planned to use to finance an overthrow of the federal government
Federal government
The federal government is the common government of a federation. The structure of federal governments varies from institution to institution. Based on a broad definition of a basic federal political system, there are two or more levels of government that exist within an established territory and...
. Power was behind the wheel of one of the two getaway vehicles.
While raiding her apartment after the bank robbery, police found evidence tying Power to both robberies. This included weapons, ammunition and a telephone switchboard
Telephone switchboard
A switchboard was a device used to connect a group of telephones manually to one another or to an outside connection, within and between telephone exchanges or private branch exchanges . The user was typically known as an operator...
from the armory. Power's attorneys would subsequently blame her involvement in the robberies as the result of manipulation by her partner Bond.
Fugitive
Gilday, Valeri and Bond were captured shortly after the Brighton robbery. Bond died in custody while making a bomb as part of an escape bid, while Valeri turned state's evidenceTurn state's evidence
To turn state's evidence is when an accused or convicted criminal testifies as a witness for the state against his associates or accomplices. Turning state's evidence is occasionally a result of a change of heart or feelings of guilt, but more often is done in response to a generous offer from the...
and testified against Gilday. Valeri received a jail term of 25 years for the robbery, while Gilday received a life sentence. Power and Saxe eluded capture.
In November 1970, Power and Saxe became the sixteenth and seventeenth persons on the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitives list. At first, Power and Saxe traveled together, escaping arrest by hiding out in women’s communes. For part of this time, the two went to ground in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
and Power assumed the name Mae Kelly. Saxe was able to elude arrest until 1975, when she was captured in Philadelphia. She then served five years in prison.
Prior to her surrender in 1993, Power had last been seen in Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
in 1974. In 1977, she assumed the alias Alice Louise Metzinger, taking the name from the birth certificate of an infant that had died the year before her birth. In 1979, moved west to Oregon and gave birth to a son, Jamie, by an unknown father.
As time went by, authorities received few tips regarding Power's location and she was eventually removed from the Most Wanted Fugitives list in 1984. The following year, she settled in the city of Lebanon
Lebanon, Oregon
Lebanon is a city in Linn County, Oregon, United States. Lebanon is located in northwest Oregon, southeast of Salem. The population was 12,950 at the 2000 census and the 2008 census data shows the population at 15,397.-Geography:...
in Oregon's Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
with her son Jamie and boyfriend Ron Duncan, a local meat cutter and bookkeeper. While living in Oregon, Power taught cooking classes at Linn-Benton Community College
Linn-Benton Community College
Linn-Benton Community College is a two year junior college, located in Linn County, Oregon.-Accreditation:LBCC is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities...
in Albany
Albany, Oregon
Albany is the eleventh largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon, and is the county seat of Linn County. It is located in the Willamette Valley at the confluence of the Calapooia River and the Willamette River in both Linn and Benton counties, just east of Corvallis and south of Salem. It is...
and worked at restaurants in Corvallis
Corvallis, Oregon
Corvallis is a city located in central western Oregon, United States. It is the county seat of Benton County and the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton County. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 54,462....
and Eugene
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
. She reached the shortlist for the post of food writer for the Corvallis Gazette-Times
Corvallis Gazette-Times
The Corvallis Gazette-Times is a daily newspaper in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. The newspaper, along with its sister publication, the Albany Democrat-Herald is owned by Lee Enterprises of Davenport, Iowa...
and became part-owner of Napoli Restaurant and Bakery restaurant in Eugene.
Power had suffered from clinical depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
since childhood and confided her fugitive status to her therapist Linda Carroll
Linda Carroll
Linda Carroll is an American author and the mother of Courtney Love.Carroll was adopted into an Italian Catholic family. She graduated from high school in 1961 and gave birth to Love in 1964. After finishing her bachelors degree in Oregon in the 1970s, she moved to New Zealand...
. She developed the desire to stop living her life under her assumed name and, through therapy that included participation in the mock trial
Mock trial
A Mock Trial is an act or imitation trial. It is similar to a moot court, but mock trials simulate lower-court trials, while moot court simulates appellate court hearings. Attorneys preparing for a real trial might use a mock trial consisting of volunteers as role players to test theories or...
of a soldier charged with killing civilians during the Vietnam War, she began to prepare for her surrender to the authorities. This included her decision to marry Duncan in 1992 and reveal her background to her friends.
Surrender
In 1993, Katherine Ann Power negotiated a surrender with authorities and ended 23 years of hiding. Negotiations were carried out through her attorneys Steven Black, a public defender, and Rikki KliemanRikki Klieman
Rikki Klieman is an American criminal defense lawyer and TV personality for TruTV. A native of Chicago, she worked in criminal defense in Boston and taught at Columbia Law School before moving to the entertainment field...
, a prominent Boston lawyer. On September 15, 1993, she pleaded guilty to two counts of armed robbery and manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
in Boston. At the time, her son Jamie was 14 years old and a freshman in high school, while Power was 44 years old.
Her husband, Ron Duncan, then adopted Jamie.
In court, Power made the following statement about officer Schroeder:
Power was sentenced to eight to twelve years in prison for the bank robbery, and five years and a $10,000 fine for the National Guard armory crimes. Additionally, judge Robert Banks of Suffolk County
Suffolk County, Massachusetts
Suffolk County has no land border with Plymouth County to its southeast, but the two counties share a water boundary in the middle of Massachusetts Bay.-National protected areas:*Boston African American National Historic Site...
Superior Court imposed a probation condition that Power could not profit from her crime. Banks remarked that the sentence negotiated was inadequate.
The second five years were to be served concurrently with the eight to twelve year sentence, with a possibility of parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
after five years. This probation condition also precluded her ability to profit directly or indirectly from telling her story. Power appealed this portion of the sentence on First Amendment grounds, but the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere.-History:...
rejected the argument and the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari.
In her only public statement, Power said:
Prison and release
While in prison Power completed her college degree in liberal studies through Boston UniversityBoston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
. In March 1998, Power was eligible for parole after receiving time off for good behavior, but withdrew her request after opposition from the victim’s family.
On October 2, 1999, she was released from prison in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and placed on fourteen years of probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
after serving six years of her eight to twelve year sentence.
Fifty years old at the time of release, Power then returned to Oregon and the family she formed while a fugitive. Shortly after release she appeared at a public forum on peace at Willamette University
Willamette University
Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and...
in Salem, Oregon
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
, where she questioned the “violent posture” of some people in the peace movement, including activist Philip Berrigan
Philip Berrigan
Philip Francis Berrigan was an internationally renowned American peace activist, Christian anarchist and former Roman Catholic priest...
.
Later, Power enrolled in graduate studies at Oregon State University in Corvallis, where she worked on a masters degree in interdisciplinary studies with focuses on writing, philosophy, and ethics. She also taught freshman composition for the English department. On May 10, 2001, she gave a poetry reading in Corvallis and graduated with her MAIS later that year. In September 2001, Katherine Ann Power represented the Oregon State philosophy department in a biotech lecture series. As of 2008, she worked for Cambridge Cares About AIDS in the Boston area.
Cultural references
Since her surrender, Power and her story have been the basis for a variety of books and even a television episode of Law & OrderLaw & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
. The television episode was a 1994 episode of Law & Order entitled White Rabbit which was loosely based on her case. In the show, her character is called Susan Forrest and she is found after money from the robbery turns up in a private safety deposit box after a robbery. William Kunstler
William Kunstler
William Moses Kunstler was an American self-described "radical lawyer" and civil rights activist, known for his controversial clients...
even appears in the episode playing himself as Forrest's lawyer. The fifth season episode aired on October 19, 1994. Later her story was the basis for Dana Spiotta’s novel, Eat the Document.
She is also part of David Racine's novel, Floating in a Most Peculiar Way.
