News
Changes In Place At Fairfield County Jail Post-Escape
By: Colleen O'Morrow, WOUB Staff Writer
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New procedures are in place at the Fairfield County jail now, following the February escape of an inmate there.
Sheriff Dave Phalen says the investigation into Jeremiah Searles' escape was finalized this week, leading to the changes.
Searles was discovered missing February 20 during an evening head count.
He was arrested two days later in Fayette County.
Phalen says the deputies on duty during the escape face disciplinary actions with service training.
He says all deputies will undergo in-service training for consistency and accuracy in their head counts as part of the jail changes.
"Some of the things we've done since this incident, we've installed four additional cameras out there, we've limited the number of prisoners that are allowed to be out during rec time to only 20 and when prisoners are out at rec time we now have two deputies instead of one that are supervising them," said Phalen.
Phalen says Searles will now face felony charges of escape and he may be sent to the penitentiary. He was previously being held on Missouri warrant for deviant sexual assault and local charges including obstruction, falsification, criminal trespass and narcotics posession.