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Fugitive wrote of struggle with law

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published September 11, 2006

CARROLL, N.Y. - Days before breaking out of jail in April, a disconsolate Ralph "Bucky" Phillips sent his parole lawyer a thank-you note that hinted at an ominous turn in his life.

"I'm just not cut out for the life you folks live. I tried it, it didn't work," Phillips wrote, nearing the end of a 90-day sentence for a parole violation and fearing that his sentence was going to be extended.

A petty criminal for most of his life, he had left prison in November after 13 years for burglary and larceny. A parole violation in January landed him back in jail. Out of the past 23 years, he spent 20 in state prisons.

On April 2, Phillips cut a hole in the kitchen ceiling at the Erie County jail near Buffalo with a can opener and escaped. During his high-profile flight from justice, he became the suspect in the shootings of three state troopers, including one who died, and was pursued in the state's largest manhunt ever. Phillips, 44, surrendered without firing a shot Friday night just across the Pennsylvania line.

Despite a long disciplinary record in prison that included fights with fellow inmates, he had no criminal history of violence. However, Phillips had threatened "suicide by cop" in the past and once, as he left a county jail, left a note promising "to splatter pig meat."

Phillips' court-appointed parole lawyer isn't sure what happened.

"He's certainly no angel," John Keavey said. "But the Phillips I knew was definitely not some kind of animal. This was a guy who was really trying to turn his life around when he came out of prison, who wanted just to work and reconnect with his daughter and was not allowed to."

Phillips spent Christmas Day with his former girlfriend and their 23-year-old daughter, who was pregnant with her third child. Until then, he had known his daughter only from prison visits.

In January, Phillips violated his parole when he was ejected from a halfway house following an argument with a counselor who refused to give him a pass to visit family.

Back in jail, Phillips wrote to Keavey days before his escape.

"I just wanted you to know I enjoyed meeting you and I hope you and your kids will always be able to share the things that make your life most happy," Phillips wrote. "At least one of us has it."

[Last modified September 11, 2006, 01:46:41]