Robert Lee Burns

The initial crime

In November 1963, Burns and two partners, Robert Mealman and Clifford Toycen Jr, robbed a Bank of America in Sacramento, California for $45,000. Burns acted as the driver of the getaway car. At the time, he was on parole for an attempted robbery in Oregon from 1955. While speeding away from the area in a white Cadillac convertible bearing stolen plates, the men were pulled over in Truckee, California by California Highway Patrol officer Glenn W. Carlson. Officer Carlson initially wrote the men a speeding ticket, but realized shortly after that their plates were stolen and that the men matched the description that had been broadcast of the robbery suspects.

Officer Carlson gave chase and pulled the men over a second time. During the ensuing disturbance, Mealman shot and killed the 33-year-old Carlson. The men fled the scene, but three were arrested days later. The men all pled guilty, resulting in felony murder convictions that avoided the death penalty. All three were sentenced to life in prison.

Prison and parole

Burns spent four and a half years in California's Folsom State Prison before being transferred to Oregon to serve out the remainder of his Oregon conviction; at the time this was a routine practice. Officials from California were under the impression that Burns would be returned to them at the conclusion of that sentence, as was standard practice at the time.

While in Oregon, Burns suffered a serious illness that almost killed him and subsequently decided to turn his life around. He earned his high school diploma, took university courses by correspondence and read extensively. He worked with his brother to start a vacuum-cleaning business, despite being in prison. He was given escorted day passes to give motivational talks at schools and community centres. Finally, he gathered approximately 50 recommendation letters supporting his parole efforts from prison personnel like guards, counsellors, and even the prison warden.

In 1975, he was paroled again on the attempted robbery charge from Oregon. The governor of Oregon, Robert W. Straub, considered him rehabilitated and refused to sign the warrant to return him to California. California officials, including then-governor Ronald Reagan, protested and called for Burns to be returned to California. At the time, they had no authority to force Straub to return Burns; prior to the 1987 Supreme Court case Puerto Rico v. Branstad, there was no way to force an unwilling state to extradite a person.

Mealman and Toycen were also paroled in California in the 1970s.

Intervening years

Burns remained in Oregon, living openly under his legal name and making no attempt to conceal his criminal history. He married, fathered several children, and remained a law-abiding citizen. Burns was arrested on fugitive warrants in 1982 and 1983, while traveling for business in Nevada and Alaska, respectively, but California officials did not follow through on these extradition attempts and nothing came of them.

Although Governor Straub had refused to return Burns to California at his release, the 1987 Supreme Court decision Puerto Rico v. Branstad ruled that the federal courts have the power to enforce interstate extraditions, even against the wishes of the governors of involved states. Despite the change, California did not actively attempt to have Burns extradited until 2001. By that time, Burns was 70 years old and suffering a number of serious ailments, including heart disease and prostate cancer.

2001 extradition dispute

Burns' case returned to prominence in 2001, when California officials discovered Burns' name on a list of fugitives during a "routine review" of their records. California officials sought extradition so Burns could serve out the remainder of his California sentence, a move opposed by Burns and his lawyer.

California officials had expected Burns to be returned after his Oregon sentence was complete, as was standard at the time. Because he was never returned, the position taken by the state of California was that legally, Burns was a fugitive, as he had neither served the remainder of his California prison sentence, nor had he officially been released on parole by the state of California. Stephen Green of the California Youth and Adult Correctional Agency was quoted in 2001 as saying, "We are required by statute to pursue all fugitives," although he conceded that "previous administrations didn't look very hard." California officials intended to return Burns to California for a parole hearing with the California parole board once apprehended.

Arrest

He was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on January 4, 2001, and was held in jail at Lane County, Oregon until March 23, when a lawyer paid his $10,000 bail. During his incarceration, he was hospitalized three times due to his failing health. He remained in Oregon, appealing the process through a public defender. His lawyer advanced several arguments against his extradition, including the argument that Burns, having been brought to Oregon as prisoner, had not left California voluntarily in the first place. Phillips later argued that returning Burns to California would effectively be "a death sentence" because of his health concerns. Phillips suggested that Burns would not be eligible for immediate compassionate release, and it would be at least six months before a parole hearing would be held, during which he was likely to die. Burns himself agreed that he did not expect to live past those six months, and said that he would prefer to die with his family.

In March 2001, Oregon governor John Kitzhaber wrote a letter to California governor Gray Davis, asking Davis to drop the matter, although Kitzhaber did acknowledge that the law favored California's position. Davis responded by saying that Burns was still considered a fugitive, and that it would be inappropriate for his office to intervene while he remained "at large" in Oregon.

In April 2001, Lane County circuit judge Bryan Hodges denied Burns' motion for a stay of extradition. He commended Burns for his upstanding life and clean record, but found that the law showed no alternative to extradition. Officers from the California Department of Corrections (CDC) took custody of Burns and loaded him into a prison van to transport him south towards the California border. In the meantime, Burns' lawyer won an emergency stay of extradition "pending a review of Mr. Burns' case by the Oregon Court of Appeals".

The CDC van was pulled over by Oregon State Police officers just outside of Medford, Oregon, about 21 miles (34 km) from the California border. Burns was returned to Medford, but officials in Jackson County refused to lodge him in their jail, citing his extreme medical issues. State Police then transported Burns back to Lane County jail, and he was eventually released with an ankle monitor.

Reactions and legacy

Family and friends of Officer Carlson objected to Burns remaining in Oregon, and stated that he should return to California. In an interview, Carlson's son Eric, who was barely four years old when his father died, stated in an interview that he sympathized with Burns' family potentially losing a loved one, but that he still believed that Burns should return to California to stand before the parole board for a hearing. A bypass over California State Route 267 near Old Brockway Road in Truckee is named the CHP Officer Glenn Carlson Memorial Bypass in Carlson's memory. A memorial ceremony was held in November 2013 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Carlson's death.

In contrast, Burns' family labelled the extradition attempt "cruel and unreasonable," citing his age and serious health issues, as well as his exemplary post-prison record. Oregon authorities confirmed that Burns had not had a negative law enforcement contact since his release, including minor infractions such as speeding tickets.

Death

Burns died on January 22, 2002 at the age of 71 without having been returned to California. Although his case was still pending, his family told him it had been settled and removed his monitoring bracelet. His former sister-in-law, Tami Ferguson, stated, "We wanted him to die thinking he was a free man."