Page "Billy the Kid" Paragraph 35

With his execution scheduled for May 13, McCarty was removed to Lincoln, where he was held under guard by two of Garrett's deputies, James Bell and Robert Ollinger, on the top floor of the town courthouse.

On April 28, while Garrett was out of town, McCarty stunned the territory by killing both of his guards and escaping.

The details of the escape are unclear.

Some researchers believe that a sympathizer placed a pistol in a nearby privy that McCarty was permitted to use, under escort, each day.

McCarty retrieved the gun, and turned it on Bell when the pair had reached the top of a flight of stairs in the courthouse.

Another theory holds that McCarty slipped off his manacles at the top of the stairs, struck Bell over the head with them, grabbed Bell's own gun, and shot him with it.