In Missouri and Oklahoma, Ma Barker raises four sons to be outlaws like her idol Jesse James. They begin with petty crimes, and when they get caught, Ma runs to the rescue and talks them out of trouble. But in June of 1921, her son Arthur commits a crime so serious that Ma can’t help. And by the end of the year, three of the four Barker boys are in prison serving lengthy sentences. It’s a rough beginning to one of the most infamous gangs in American history.

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