Arkansas prison employees fired after 'Devil in the Ozarks' escape

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Two employees at an Arkansas prison where an inmate known as the “Devil in the Ozarks” escaped have been fired for policy violations, corrections officials said Thursday as they faced questions from lawmakers who said the escape points to deeper problems.

The head of the Arkansas Board of Corrections told state lawmakers the violations allowed Grant Hardin to escape from the Calico Rock prison wearing a makeshift law enforcement uniform on May 25. But officials have said there was no evidence employees knowingly assisted Hardin's escape.

One of the fired employees had allowed Hardin onto an outside kitchen dock unsupervised and the other employee worked in a tower and had opened the gate Hardin walked through without confirming his identity, Chairman Benny Magness said.

“If either one of them would have been following policy, it wouldn't have happened,” Magness told members of the Legislative Council's charitable, penal, and correctional institutions subcommittee.

Hardin was captured 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) northwest of the Calico Rock prison on June 6. Authorities said he escaped by donning an outfit designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Magness said the outfit was crafted from an inmate uniform and kitchen apron dyed black using a marker while a soup can lid and a Bible cover were fashioned to look like a badge.

Lawmakers said the escape pointed to systemic problems beyond the two employees — including how Hardin was able to fashion the fake uniform without guards noticing.

“I think we’ve got major issues here that need to be dealt with,” said Republican Sen. Matt McKee, who co-chairs the subcommittee.

Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway, near the Arkansas-Missouri border, is serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary “Devil in the Ozarks.”

After his capture, Hardin was transferred to a maximum security prison in Varner, a small community about 65 miles (125 kilometers) southeast of Little Rock.

Hardin has pleaded not guilty to an escape charge and is set to go on trial in November.

Hardin held a job in the kitchen in the prison and had not had any disciplinary problems during his time there.

In addition to the uniform, Hardin fashioned a ladder out of wooden pallets that were on the dock and also took peanut butter sandwiches from the prison to survive on after his escape, corrections officials told lawmakers Thursday.

Hardin planned to use the ladder to scale the fence and escape if the gate wasn't opened for him, said Dexter Payne, director of the division of correction.

“There are a lot of things he did unnoticed and unaware,” Republican Sen. Ben Gilmore said during the hearing. “I don't think you can blame just two people for that.”

Members of the panel also said Hardin's escape points to the need to scrutinize a classification system that placed a convicted murderer in what's primarily a medium-security facility.

Payne said a critical incident review of the escape planned later this month may determine if other employees will face firings, demotions or disciplinary actions. It also will determine what other policy changes may be needed, he said.

State Police is also investigating the escape to determine whether any laws, policies or procedures were violated in the escape. Col. Mike Hagar, the head of state police and secretary of public safety, said the final report on the investigation may be completed within 30 days.

Thomas Hurst, warden of the prison —formally called the North Central Unit — said State Police was not notified immediately of the escape though local police were, blaming it on a miscommunication.

“There’s nobody that’s more embarrassed about (the escape) than me,” Hurst said. “It’s not good. We failed, and I understand it.”