Kate Barker

Jadyn Myers Pd. 7Biography

Born on October 8, 1873 Grew up in Ash Grove, Missouri Married a soft-spoken farmer, George Barker Had four sons: Herman, Lloyd, Arthur, and Fred Her sons constantly got into trouble with the law

and she refused to discipline them. Her husband hated this and ended up leaving her in 1915.

Her sons and friend Alvin Karpis formed the Barker-Karpis gang in 1931

Kate helped them plan their crimes and gave them places to hide out

She dropped out of school when she was 10 years old

Idolized Jesse James and his gang who rode through her town doing criminal acts

Was very friendly with several criminals and often allowed them to hide out in her house along with her sons.

Moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma to start their crime spree as a family.

Eventually was killed with her son Fred in a shootout with the FBI

Crime List

Crime Date Victims PunishmentRobbery December,

1931 Department store in Missouri

Escaped

Murder December 1931

Sheriff C. R Kelly

Escaped

Robbery March 22, 1932

Northwestern National Bank

Escaped

Attempted Robbery and Shootout with police

September 1932

Third Northwestern National Bank

Escaped

Evidence of CrimeSince Ma Barker was just the mastermind behind all off the crime but never actually committed any of them, there was not any evidence really to convict her of the crime. She was however being chased because she was a part of the gang that was doing the criminal acts. Her son’s crimes could be used as evidence as well as being involved in the shootout that she eventually died it. Her house that she hid criminals in could also be evidence of her wrongdoings.

Sentencing/DeathKate Barker never received a sentence because when the FBI finally caught up to them on January 16th, 1935. Her and her son Fred were involved in an FBI shootout for four hours when she was finally killed in the gunfire.

Quotes“Lies! All lies! You're all lying against my boys!”- Ma Barker

NicknamesShe was known predominantly by the name Ma Barker

LiteratureShe had several books written about her

Ma Barker: America’s Most Wanted Mother by Chris Enss and Howard Kazanjian

Ma: The Life and Times of Ma Barker and Her Boys by John Koblas

The Real Ma Barker by Miriam Allen deFord

All of these books were non-fiction and depicted the life of crime that Ma Barker lived.

MoviesThere were also two movies done about her

Bloody Mama Ma Barker’s Killer Brood

Link- Bloody Mama Trailer

SongsI was only able to find one song about Ma Barker

Ma Baker by Boney MExcerpt of Lyrics“This is the story of ma Baker the meanest cat from old Chicago townShe was the meanest catIn old Chicago townShe was the meanest catShe really mowed them downShe had no heart at allNo no no heart at allShe was the meanest catFor she was really toughShe left her husband flatHe wasn't tough enoughShe took her boys along'Cause they were mean and strongMa ma ma maMa BakerShe taught her four sonsMa ma ma maMa BakerTo handle their gunsMa ma ma maMa BakerShe never could cryMa ma ma maMa Baker

But she knew how to die”

Sociological Theory of Deviance In the instance of Ma Barker, I believe that the Differential-Association Theory would best describe her deviance. Out of all the different theories, she matches up with this one the most. The idea behind this theory is that people’s behavior is largely determined by the company they keep. People can learn their criminal behaviors from others. They are also more likely to become a criminal if their influencers in life have criminal values. Kate Barker was a part of a family of criminals. Each of her sons got in trouble with the law at some point in their lives, and they all ended up being a part of the same gang. Gang families have similar values, and since they were all related already, eachother’s criminal values caused influence on one another. Since they spent all of their time together, they were around the behavior and it got to a point where rule breaking was all that they knew. Once they started the robberies and escaped they continued on with the criminal behavior until they were finally tracked down and killed. Ma Barker set her children on the path of criminality by never steering them away from it. She actually encouraged this behavior and helped them plan their next deviant act. Also, when she was growing up, Ma Barker idolized Jesse James and wanted to be like him. Overall, Ma Barker’s actions were influenced by the company she kept and who she looked up to.