David Bridges
The Life and Death of Patty Hearst’s Kidnapper Bill Harris Passes Away at Age 81
Published
Bill Harris, a prominent figure in the notorious kidnapping of Patty Hearst, has passed away.
According to The New York Times, Harris died on September 10 in San Francisco.
Harris gained notoriety in 1974 as a key member of the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA), a radical leftist organization responsible for the kidnapping of Patty Hearst from her Berkeley, California apartment.
During her captivity, Patty was coerced into recording a message that condemned her own family and appeared to adopt the SLA’s beliefs. Eventually, she took part in the group’s robbery of a bank in San Francisco.
Patty was apprehended in 1975 and subsequently convicted of bank robbery. Although she received a seven-year prison sentence, she served only two years before President Jimmy Carter commuted the remainder of her term.
In 2001, President Bill Clinton granted Patty a full pardon, allowing her to move forward with her life.
Bill Harris was 81 years old at the time of his death.
Ivy Caldwell
Clara Hastings
