N. Idaho jail escapes blamed on crumbling wall
ST. MARIES, Idaho (AP) - A series of escapes from the Benewah County jail has authorities looking for ways to prevent prisoners from digging through a deteriorating brick wall at the 88-year-old lockup.
The most recent escape from the jail in St. Maries was last month, when authorities say Todd Edwin Miller and Tyler James Walton scraped through the brick wall in their cell bathroom and used bed sheets to scale down the side of the building. The men were caught within a few hours.
Last year, a convicted burglar escaped from the same bathroom after removing bricks from the wall and was recaptured after five days on the run, said Sheriff Robert Kirts. That particular inmate broke out again two months later but was caught later that day, the sheriff said.
Other inmates have dug through the wall during previous escapes from the jail, which is on the third floor of a courthouse built in 1924. Kirts, who has been sheriff for 16 years, wasn't sure how many prisoners had escaped in the jail's history but said the first was in 1947.
The history of escapes is visible in the mismatched patch jobs on the brick wall, marking the spots where inmates have broken through their cell confines.
"I don't know how they get through those holes, I really don't," Kirts told the Spokesman-Review (http://bit.ly/OLkar8).
The best solution would be for the county to build a jail but going to voters for funding is not a possibility given the economy, the sheriff said. A quick fix would be to reinforce the cell bathroom wall where inmates have recently escaped with a steel plate, Kirts said.
"That seems to be the favorite place of people to be exiting," he said.
Prisoners have used improvised tools, including a piece of wire off a mop bucket to scrape away the brick mortar. "Actually, if you get a stout enough plastic spoon, you could probably dig out," Kirts said. "At this point, the tensile strength of the mortar is about zero."
Benewah County officials recently discussed the problem and have resolved to fix it, said commissioner Bud McCall said.
"To what extent, I'm really not sure," McCall said. "We know now it has to be done, and that's what we intend to do."
The most recent escape from the jail in St. Maries was last month, when authorities say Todd Edwin Miller and Tyler James Walton scraped through the brick wall in their cell bathroom and used bed sheets to scale down the side of the building. The men were caught within a few hours.
Last year, a convicted burglar escaped from the same bathroom after removing bricks from the wall and was recaptured after five days on the run, said Sheriff Robert Kirts. That particular inmate broke out again two months later but was caught later that day, the sheriff said.
Other inmates have dug through the wall during previous escapes from the jail, which is on the third floor of a courthouse built in 1924. Kirts, who has been sheriff for 16 years, wasn't sure how many prisoners had escaped in the jail's history but said the first was in 1947.
The history of escapes is visible in the mismatched patch jobs on the brick wall, marking the spots where inmates have broken through their cell confines.
"I don't know how they get through those holes, I really don't," Kirts told the Spokesman-Review (http://bit.ly/OLkar8).
The best solution would be for the county to build a jail but going to voters for funding is not a possibility given the economy, the sheriff said. A quick fix would be to reinforce the cell bathroom wall where inmates have recently escaped with a steel plate, Kirts said.
"That seems to be the favorite place of people to be exiting," he said.
Prisoners have used improvised tools, including a piece of wire off a mop bucket to scrape away the brick mortar. "Actually, if you get a stout enough plastic spoon, you could probably dig out," Kirts said. "At this point, the tensile strength of the mortar is about zero."
Benewah County officials recently discussed the problem and have resolved to fix it, said commissioner Bud McCall said.
"To what extent, I'm really not sure," McCall said. "We know now it has to be done, and that's what we intend to do."
