On April 19, 1932, Fults was shot and captured during a gun battle in Kaufman County, Texas. Bonnie Parker was captured too, but Barrow escaped. Fults pleaded guilty to auto theft and armed robbery in exchange for Bonnie's release. Bonnie, still an unknown, was set free and quickly rejoined Clyde. Fults once again returned to prison.

That summer Raymond Hamilton briefly rejoined Barrow. He was arrested in December and began serving a lengthy prison term at Eastham. Barrow held a grudge against Hamilton for backing out of the proposed Eastham raid, and the irony of Hamilton's incarceration there no doubt struck the sometimes laconic Clyde as funny.

Several others floated in and out of the so-called Barrow gang throughout 1933, most notably Clyde's older brother Buck, Buck's wife, Blanche, and another character named W.D. Jones. Between April and July the five outlaws were involved in a number of widely publicized incidents, including four gun battles that resulted in the deaths of three police officers. Then Buck and Blanche were captured in Iowa, and Buck died just a few days later from wounds received in a previous gunfight. Jones left the Barrow gang in August, and police arrested him a few weeks later near Houston.

As Christmas came and went, Barrow's thoughts turned again to the idea of raiding Eastham. Someone else was thinking about the raid too--Eastham inmate Raymond Hamilton.

A 48-year-old eight-time loser named Jimmy Mullens, about to finish a three-year sentence for burglary, bunked next to Hamilton at Eastham. Raymond promised Mullens $1,000, payable after his escape, if he would find Barrow and arrange to have a number of weapons planted in the prison farm compound. Once released on January 10, 1934, Mullens went immediately to Floyd Hamilton's West Dallas home to ask for help locating Barrow. Floyd had a clean record at the time, but he listened to the plan. Later that same day he took Mullens to meet with Bonnie and Clyde.

Barrow hesitated about getting involved. Something bothered him--Jimmy Mullens. Barrow had known Mullens in prison and remembered him as an unreliable and unpredictable drug addict and stool pigeon. Looking at Mullens, Barrow could think of only one thing--he was being led into a trap. Finally he agreed to help with the raid--but only if Mullens took part. "I'll help you out, but I want Mullens to plant the guns himself," Barrow declared. Mullens stiffened. "I'm not doing it alone," he said. Turning to Floyd, he demanded, "You're coming with me." Floyd reluctantly agreed.

Then late in the evening of January 13, 1934, Bonnie and Clyde dropped off Hamilton and a trembling Mullens less than a mile from the main prison compound of Eastham's camp 1. Three days later Barrow and Mullens were waiting in the early morning fog for the prison break to begin.

The routine at Eastham was that a group of guards collectively called "the shotgun ring" oversaw each work squad, while a "long arm man," a guard on horseback armed with a high-powered rifle, positioned himself at a distance from the detail. According to the instructions of Colonel Lee Simmons, general manager of the Texas Prison System, the mounted guard "had no duty except to stay well clear of the convicts and be in the background ready with his Winchester in case of excitement." Should a convict break past the shotgun ring, the long arm man would pick him off. That's the way it was supposed to work. Prisoners Raymond Hamilton and Joe Palmer knew that one of Eastham's more notorious long arm men, Major Crowson (Major was his given name, not a title), routinely disregarded the policy. Crowson had a reputation for leaving his post to beat prisoners. In fact, Palmer had once received a severe beating from Crowson.

On the morning of the break, Raymond Hamilton "jumped squads," meaning he left his 16-man work crew and joined the crew that included Palmer, Bybee, and Methvin. Guard Olan Bozeman, assigned to Palmer's squad, noticed Hamilton's presence even before the inmates started for the fields from camp 1. Hamilton and Palmer suspected that would happen but figured Bozeman would delay taking any action until he was in the field. Once there, out of earshot of the main camp, he would probably summon Crowson to help him deal with Hamilton. Sure enough, Bozeman called Crowson over as soon as the work crews arrived in the field. As the two guards conversed, Palmer strolled up to them as if he wanted to ask a question. Instead, he pulled out a weapon. "Don't you boys try to do anything," he said.

There are conflicting reports about what happened next. Some witnesses said Palmer deliberately shot Crowson for revenge; others claimed Crowson fired the first shot. Another source quoted Palmer as saying, "I told the guards to sit still. Don't move and there won't be no shooting. I really thought the guards would stick their hands up."

Regardless, at some point Palmer shot Crowson in the stomach. Mortally wounded, the guard turned his horse around and rode back to camp 1 to sound the alarm. Palmer then fired at Bozeman but missed. Bozeman pulled a pistol and returned fire, but his bullet only creased Palmer's temple. Palmer fired again. This time the bullet struck Bozeman's holstered shotgun and sliced deep into his hip. Bozeman and his mangled weapon fell to the ground. Meanwhile, Raymond Hamilton was fumbling around in the mud. In the excitement he had accidentally ejected the clip from his own weapon.

At that point Clyde Barrow, still concealed in the nearby creek, stood up and fired a volley from his automatic rifle over the heads of everyone in the field. Guards and prisoners alike dived for cover. Back in the car, Bonnie Parker leaned on the horn to signal the escaping men. Palmer, Hamilton, Methvin, and Bybee began running south toward the sound.

Two guards ran away, completely deserting their posts and Bozeman. They were found hiding 500 yards from their squads. Only one guard, Bobbie Bullard, stood his ground, perhaps preventing a mass escape. "The first man to raise his head will have it blown clear off!" he shouted.

Nevertheless, one other convict managed to flee. J.B. French, serving time for robbery, attempted murder, and auto theft, ducked into the underbrush until things quieted down, then slipped into the woods. Guards recaptured him shortly after midnight. French knew nothing of the escape plan and didn't even meet those responsible for his brief taste of freedom.