On Feb. 4, 1974, members of the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA) kidnapped Patty Hearst, granddaughter of William Randolph Hearst (the notorious yellow journalist and basis for Citizen Kane). The SLA was made up of about a dozen radical leftists, including two black ex-cons and several white, middle-class activists, all bent on starting a revolution. They made up the word “Symbionese” to represent their goal of symbiosis among people in society — though their tactics included murder and bank robbery in addition to kidnapping. Now, the last captured member of the SLA has been released on parole, reports AP.

Robert Stone, director of the documentary, “Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst,” sheds some light on why exactly the SLA decided to kidnap her. It had to do with the fact that two members of the SLA were in jail at the time — arrested for the murder of a superintendent. Taking cues from Latin American terrorists, the SLA originally hoped to make a prisoner exchange with Hearst. After kidnapping the heiress, they decided this plan wouldn’t work, and instead convinced Hearst (allegedly by brainwashing her) to join their cause. She then participated in at least two robberies with the SLA and recorded public statements condemning capitalistic society and her family, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

After a police shootout (where several SLA members were killed) and a year on the lam, Hearst was finally captured, along with another surviving SLA member. After spending some time in jail, Hearst was released in 1979 and pardoned in 2001.

Meanwhile, James William Kilgore, another SLA member, was actually on the lam and living under an alias until 2002, when the FBI arrested him for a murder he committed during a bank robbery in 1975. This past Sunday, he was released on parole.

Personally, I can’t wait to watch Stone’s documentary on the SLA and the whole fascinating affair — watch the trailer below.

Related stuff:
How Brainwashing Works
How Presidential Pardons Work
What causes Stockholm Syndrome?