Career
In 1924, Downs helped organize the Professional Ball Players of America. The organization carried on for a number of years, assisting ill and needy former ballplayers, and Downs served as a Director of the organization through 1925. As the Great Depression hit, Downs fell on hard times.
In March 1932, Downs and another man robbed a jewelry store at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Los Angeles
Downs was convicted of first-degree robbery and sentenced to five years to life. He was paroled after 3-1/2 years and returned to Iowa.
Downs died of cirrhosis of the liver in Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 1939 at age 56. He is buried at the Neola Township Cemetery in Neola, Iowa.
