A federal judge sentenced Steven Whitecloud (photo, left), 88, of Billing, Montana, to prison last week for bank robbery, NBC News reported on Sunday, June 23, 2024 (read story here).
Whitecloud put his grandson up to robbing banks and was the getaway driver. They pulled off two bank robberies in August 2023 before being caught.
He’s a chronic lawbreaker, having previously served time for bank robbery, and accumulating three other convictions since his release.
This is a routine criminal case, notable only for the defendant’s age, which reminds me of a story about the infamous late federal judge Julius Hoffman, who presided over the “Chicago Seven trial” arising from the 1960s antiwar protests.
Hoffman had a reputation for being abrasive. Like the judge in this case, he sentenced an elderly bank robber. When he gave the defendant 20 years, the man complained, “Judge, I’m 70 years old; I can’t do 20 years.” Unmoved, Hoffman replied, “Then do the best you can.”