New Orleans sheriff indicted after investigation into brazen jailbreak and escape of 10 inmates
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A grand jury on Wednesday indicted a Louisiana sheriff whose office was under investigation after 10 inmates Escaped from New Orleans prison with a daring escape under his supervision.
Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson is not accused of helping inmates escape through a hole behind a toilet while escaping from the jail, setting off a months-long search. In the end, all those who escaped were caught. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said the state investigation found Hutson’s mismanagement of the prison led to the escape.
The 30-count indictment handed down by a New Orleans grand jury accuses Hutson of abuse of power, obstruction of justice and falsifying public records.
“Although Sheriff Hutson did not personally open the jail’s doors to the fugitives, his refusal to comply with basic legal requirements and take even minimal precautions in the performance of his duties directly contributed to and enabled the escape,” Murrill said in a statement.
Huston’s office did not immediately respond to phone calls, text messages and emails seeking comment. Court records do not list the name of Huston’s personal attorney, who lost his re-election campaign and will leave office Monday.
In his farewell speech Tuesday, Hutson said his office faced numerous challenges and that jailbreaking “tested us to our limits.” He added that his office “responded with professionalism, urgency and resilience, and we emerged stronger because of it.”
Court records show bail for Hutson was set at $300,000 and he was ordered to surrender his passport and not leave the state. Bianka Brown, the sheriff’s office treasurer, was also indicted on 20 similar charges. He did not immediately respond to phone calls and text messages sent to numbers linked to him.
The escapees left behind graffiti reading “Easy LoL” after crawling through the hole behind the prison toilet and climbing the barbed wire fence. The prison did not realize the inmates had been missing for more than seven hours.
Government officials and some city leaders Accused Hutson of mismanagement and criticized him for not notifying police and other authorities in a timely manner. Hutson initially blamed political opponents for the escape, without providing any evidence to support his claim. He also said faulty door locks enabled the escape and added that he was seeking funds to improve the prison’s problematic infrastructure.
The Orleans Parish prison system was plagued by: violence, corruption and dysfunction It was used for decades and was placed under federal oversight in 2013. But despite tens of millions of dollars of investment and the opening of a new prison facility in 2015, problems remained. warned Due to understaffing in the prison, lax supervision, and a rapidly increasing number of “internal escapes” in the two years before the escape.
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Brook is an affiliate member of the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. report for america is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
