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| N.C. Inmates Leave Cells, Returned in Minutes |
| By Durham Herald-Sun |
| Published: 07/16/2003 |
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Although Durham County Commissioners approved a $1.2 million contract to repair the faulty system in May, the work isn't scheduled to begin until August. In the meantime, jail officials are 'cannibalizing' parts from a deserted section of the jail to repair areas where inmates are housed, Durham County Sheriff's Maj. Lucy Zastrow said. 'Some of the doors don't close and the inmates know that,' Zastrow said. 'This is one of those cases where the door didn't close and the inmates got out.' Michael Gillespie, who is also known as Michael Satterfield, pushed open the door to his jail cell around 3 a.m. Friday, Zastrow said. 'The electric door didn't catch the way it should have' when he was locked into his cell earlier, she said. Gillespie, 34, of Florence, S.C., then allegedly opened the door to another inmate's cell, Zastrow said. He and Anthony Patterson Jr. were out of their cells for about five minutes before an officer conducting routine patrols found them and locked them back into their cells, Zastrow said. Patterson, 19, is being held on murder and first-degree kidnapping charges in connection with the July 4 slaying of Durham nurse Tia Carroway, possession of stolen goods and felonious larceny. Gillespie, who is being held on charges of larceny of a motor vehicle, robbery with a dangerous weapon and possession of a stolen vehicle, also faced an escape charge for an alleged June incident, jail officials said. On June 3, Gillespie allegedly walked behind a detective from the intake area of the Durham County Jail to the outdoor sally port where prisoners are unloaded and picked up for court. Officials charged both men with misdemeanor escape from a local jail in connection with Friday's incident; the first Zastrow is aware of caused by the malfunctioning electrical system since the jail opened in 1996. 'The vendor that we used to build the jail is no longer in business and [jail officials] are cannibalizing the parts they can't get,' Zastrow said. 'I don't know whether it's locking mechanisms or wiring, but they are using parts they can no longer find.' The custom-made system has been deteriorating in recent years. The county has twice budgeted about $300,000 for repairs, but no companies have bid to do the work. After contractors read the specifications, they said they didn't have the expertise to solve the problem and that new parts didn't exist, sheriff's officials have said. To avoid the same predicament, the new system will have no custom-made devices. Using off-the-shelf materials will allow the county to replace any malfunctioning parts without having to overhaul the whole system, county officials said. 'The locking system is part of what will be repaired,' County Manager Mike Ruffin said. 'They are electrically fired, not pneumatically.' The initial phase, which will determine the extent of the problem, should take about 60 days, with installation scheduled to begin in August, jail officials said. New York state-based Applied Systems Technology will install the new system. 'We will do the best we can with what we have,' Zastrow said. 'The officers who work over there are doing a good job considering the conditions they are working in.' The sheriff's office will conduct an investigation to determine if human negligence was involved, which is customary with any escape, Zastrow said. 'These things are wake-up calls and it will make the officers more diligent with trying to make sure the doors they can secure are [secure],' she said. |
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