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| Florida Escapee May Have Tricked Jail About Medical Check |
| By Miami Herald |
| Published: 05/14/2002 |
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Miami-Dade County and Miami police are trying to figure out how a prison inmate with a violent history escaped from their custody in an examination room at Jackson Memorial Hospital Friday night. It's possible, police say, that Tony ''Lover'' Vaughn faked an injury in the hope of being taken to a less secure environment. ''We have to consider everything,'' said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Janelle Hall. After telling officers at the Miami-Dade County Jail that he had swallowed a razor blade, Vaughn was transported to Ward D, an area used for prisoner medical examinations on the third floor of the orthopedics and rehabilitation building at Jackson. ''Even though nobody saw him actually swallow the blade, we had to take his situation seriously,'' Hall said. ''It could have been a life-threatening situation for him,'' she added. According to Hall, police unlocked Vaughn's handcuffs to allow him to change out of his prison jumpsuit into a hospital gown. It was then Vaughn overpowered an officer, possibly forcing him to unlock his ankle shackles, and ran out of the ward, slipping by other officers and two metal doors. Ward D is directly across the street from a Miami-Dade Metrorail station. County and city police immediately closed off the area around the station and searched other stations throughout the city, but could not locate Vaughn. Miami-Dade police said that during the scuffle, Vaughn fought with the officer over a gun, dropping it before fleeing. However, Ward D requires officers to check all weapons before entering the facility. Hall said an investigation was under way to determine whether or not Vaughn's officer had checked his weapon. Despite the gun still being on the hospital's premises, police consider Vaughn armed and dangerous. Vaughn has previous convictions for armed robbery and burglary, as well as a nine-year prison sentance for aggravated battery. He was being held at the county jail awaiting sentencing on convictions for carrying a concealed firearm, reckless driving, resisting arrest and burglary. Police described Vaughn as a 36-year-old black male, 5 feet 10 inches tall with a gold-rimmed front tooth and tattoos on each arm -- a dice and question mark on the right, a Playboy bunny and a heart on the left. And on his chest are two more tattoos: one reading ''I love Matilda,'' the other 'I love Tonya.'' This is the third incident this year at Jackson Memorial Hospital involving patient security. In February, a baby was kidnapped from a maternity ward and in April a woman fell to her death after crawling through a window in her hospital room. However, Jackson spokeswoman Vicki Zambrano said while security for the majority of the hospital is provided by Jackson personnel, Ward D security is provided by the Miami-Dade Department of Corrections. |
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http://www.corrections.com/articles/9772-florida-escapee-may-have-tricked-jail-about-medical-check