The escape of three inmates from an Arizona prison will bring sweeping changes to the privately run facility and could alter the way the state handles dangerous criminals in years to come, reports the Arizona Republic. A state report on the July 30 prison escape details systemic problems ranging from ill-equipped facilities with inadequate oversight to faulty alarm systems and disrespectful inmates, all of which combined to create a lax culture that allowed the inmates to cut through fences and sneak out of the medium-security facility.
The men were able to escape because of a culture of complacency that developed at the prison in the six years it has been open, the report said, and those factors were complicated by opening a new unit and shuffling inmates around the complex this year. The last of the three inmates was recaptured last night with his reported accomplice. Members of the group were tied to the murder of a couple in New Mexico after the escape, making the breakout Arizona's worst in 30 years. An executive with Utah-based Management & Training Corp. said the company is committed to working with the state to correct its prison's flaws.
