How does one go about extracting monies from an IRA account without being penalized?

If you are over 59.5 years of age, you can take out as much as you want with no early withdrawal penalties.

Further, if you are UNDER 59.5, there are a number of exceptions that allow you to access your IRA with no penalties.

Finally, all the above advice applies to a traditional IRA.

A Roth IRA has different withdrawal rules. Basically, about five years after you have funded the Roth IRA, you can withdraw the money virtually tax free with no penalties.