Paroled bank robber gets 15 more years

South Bend’s finest citizen award goes to William H. Easley, or should I call him, “Black Gold?”

Apparently, Easley was on parole when he decided to rob the 1^st Source in River Park four times over the span of seven weeks last year. 

You might think this professional bank robber raked in a lot of cash during his crime spree, instead he netted a mere $1,829, $836, $3,121 and $879. 

During his robberies, Easley sported a bandana and toted what appeared to his victims as a gun.  In the midst of one of his robberies, he ordered the tellers to the ground, telling them he knew each of them and he would return and kill them if given a dye pack.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t Easley’s first stint as a bank robber. St. Joseph Superior Court Judge John Marnocha sentenced him to 18 years in prison for a 2005 robbery of the Key Bank in Lakeville.

Now, you might be reading this and questioning, as I did, why he was sentenced in 2005 to 18 years and is already back on the street. 

Easley, I’m sure with the help of court appointed attorneys, appealed his conviction protesting that he didn’t rob the bank with a deadly weapon.  Instead, he stated that he used a pellet gun.

I bet if you asked the tellers in Lakeville if they were under the impression that the gun he was using would not harm them, they would be hard pressed to say they didn’t fear for their lives.

Judge Marnocha denied Easley’s request for a reduction in sentence. But thanks to the Department of Corrections, Easley was released because he completed his GED, earned a Bachelor’s Degree and completed his substance abuse treatment.

I’m confused why we have sentencing practices in the United States if they can be so easily overridden. I realize there are criminals who become rehabilitated when incarcerated, but how do some criminals slip through the cracks of the system?

Easley was on parole and committed additional acts of violence, but this wasn’t his first day in court. Instead, this was the fifth time he was sentenced for one or more felonies including attempted murder and several drug charges.

According to the article in the Tribune, Easley has been diagnosed with disassociative identity disorder, claiming he had formed an alter ego named “Black Gold” who likes “the fast life, women and drugs.”

Either way, “Black Gold” or Easley, whomever he decides to be tomorrow, was sentenced this week to an additional 15 years in prison.

As a former ten year credit union employee, who was on staff for four robberies, I can say I am extremely glad that I was never directly involved in a robbery.  But every time that burglar alarm buzzed, my heart beat about 50 times faster and 50 times louder.

Thoughts flooded my head, while trying to be heard over my heart.

“How many are there?”
“Have they left the building?”
“Do I need to hide?”
“Is anyone hurt?”

I feel for the employees of 1^st Source and Key Bank. I feel like the Judicial System has failed them. Had Easley been psychologically evaluated before his release, the tellers at 1^st Source may have never been forced to the ground and threatened.

Thank goodness the Department of Corrections felt as though he was rehabilitated. I hope you have caught my sarcasm. As a student who has obtained a Bachelor’s Degree, and has worked two and three jobs to support myself while paying for my education, I find it disgusting that inmates are able to earn degrees.

I understand that they have a hard time finding employment once they become active members of society again, but why are we rewarding poor behavior with something that many people work very hard to achieve?

Perhaps when Mr. Easley is released in a few years, he will be able to join society with a Master’s Degree, courtesy of the taxpayers of St. Joseph County.