My LVAD lifeat9200rpms: Air Force Captain, a bank robber by day, a missile launch officer by night

     This is another in a series of recollections of my time as a trial lawyer.  It is made possible by my HeartMate II, left ventricular assist device, which was implanted 28 months ago to the day.  My LVAD, number 8358, was made by Thoratec Inc., of Pleasanton, CA. It has relieved my end stage congestive heart failure and has me going like the Ever Ready rabbit in the old commercials.  Thanks to my LVAD, I am awaiting a heart transplant on the waiting list at the University of Minnesota.

     In January of 1983, I was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of North Dakota, having transferred from Chicago to Fargo  a year earlier.  1983 was memorable for two cases I helped prosecute: a U.S. Air Force captain stationed at Grand Forks AFB who robbed banks and the tax protester, anti-government Gordon Kahl, who shot and killed the U.S. Marshal and one of his deputies while wounding four other law men.

    Early in the month, the FBI and local authorities were investigating the daylight robbery of three banks around the air base.  My friend and colleague, FBI Special Agent Spencer Hellekson, who was assigned to the Grand Forks FBI office, was interviewed in a weak moment by a New York Times reporter who was writing a national wrap-up on unsolved bank robberies.  I say that he was interviewed in a "weak moment" because all agents unless authorized were anonymous and eschewed the press.

    Spence, frustrated at the lack of progress in solving the case, told The Times reporter, that the robber would be caught because "you can stand on the hood of a car and see all the way across North Dakota.  There is no where to hide."

     Well, Spence's quote made the paper but that's only half the story. Everyday the Director of the FBI is supplied a media briefing book of all mentions of the agency and The Times article was prominently displayed.  But Spence escaped censure by the Director for talking to the press.  It was no longer the era of J. Edgar Hoover.

     A fellow agent and friend of Spence's, who worked at FBI hq and had access to the briefing book, photo copied the article and sent it to the Grand Forks FBI office.

     The agent drew a caricature of Spence, standing on the hood of a bureau car with a spyglass to his eye.  His comment:  My Gawd Spence you made the New York Times and the directors briefing book.  Regards.

    The cartoon and back story provided a good laugh for those who knew what was going on.

     Within a few days, there was another bank robbery but the robber had the bad sense to rob the same bank a second time.  The teller recognized the robber because he wore a ski mask, a wool hunting shirt, looked portly, and carried a small semi-automatic pistol during the robbery.

     The robber didn't realize that, when word of the robbery circulated, an aroused populous might give chase.  That's exactly what happened.  Farmers in their pickups on the way to town and others gave chase. About two dozen local residents chased the robber in his white compact car.  They weren't in continuous pursuit but were on again off again in pursuit.  Sometimes the speeds got over 100 m.p.h. Police relied on tips from the public to pinpoint the robber's locations.
     
     Eventually, the white Dodge Omni darted into a Grand Forks motel parking lot just ahead of police and the FBI.  The driver was identified as Harold David Spruell, a captain in the United States Air Force stationed at Grand Forks Air Force Base.  He was a ballistic missile launch officer.

     Spruell was arrested.  In the car were the proceeds of the last robbery in a zippered overnight bag, which also contained a wool hunting shirt, a ski mask, and a bed sheet that Spruell had wrapped around his midsection to make him appear portly.  Also in the bag was a loaded Italian made .380 pistol.

     During Spruell's trial in U.S. District Court it developed that he had a game arcade business in the mall in Grand Forks that wasn't doing well financially.  The robbery proceeds were used in the business.  Also during the trial there was testimony that Spruell was an intercontinental ballistic missile launch officer entrusted with one of the two keys required to launch a nuclear missile from a silo deep in the ground of northeastern North Dakota.  

     The more surprising testimony was about the habit of those assigned to missile duty, who spent days underground, to use prescription drugs to remain alert and to go to sleep.  Officers from Strategic Air Command Headquarters in Nebraska attended every session of the trial and took notes.  National security implications were obvious.

     Spruell did not testify.  Another FBI agent, Ken Aldridge, who was based in Fargo, testified about Spruell's "do it yourself bank robbery kit" contained in the zippered overnight bag.

     Ken's wife was in the courtroom audience.  It was about 15 minutes before the trial typically recessed for the day and Aldridge was trying to clear the .380 to demonstrate that it was safe.  

     He was struggling to pull back the slide and was completely focused on operating the mechanism and was not watching where he was pointing the pistol.  Of course, the weapon was empty and safe and Ken did not recall that this weapon had to have the magazine inserted in the butt of the gun to allow the slide to operate.  He continued to struggle with it and the muzzle was weaving around pointed generally at U.S. District Court Judge Paul Benson, who was oblivious to the machinations.  

     But Ken's wife saw it all clearly and turned to her seat mate and said: "It looks like Ken is going to shoot the judge."   We all laughed when told about it later.

     As the prosecutor, I was powerless to help Ken through his dilemma.  I did the next best thing.  I asked for a short recess and the judge picked up on what was happening and paused, looked at the clock, and recessed the case until the next morning.  By that time, Ken was fully conversant with the workings of the Italian pistol and opened it flawlessly.

    Spruell was found guilty and sentenced to 10 years in prison.  When he was released from the prison in Atlanta, he robbed another bank, was arrested, tried, convicted, and sent back to prison for another 10 years.

     Spence was right.  There was no where for Spruell to run and no where to hide.  The case of the bank robber by day and missile launch officer by night was over.