By Joe LoTemplio
Press-Republican
DANNEMORA — As the investigation into how two murderers escaped from Clinton Correctional Facility deepens, representatives for the nearly 1,000 correction officers who work there are hoping for fair treatment.
“Our hope is to have a conversation with management about any potential changes in the system that can improve safety, not only for the officers that work there but for the inmates as well,” said James Miller, spokesman for New York State Correction Officers Police Benevolent Association, the union that represents the 966 officers who work at Clinton.
INVESTIGATION
The State Inspector General’s Office has been conducting an investigation into the escape of Richard Matt and David Sweat from the Dannemora maximum-security facility in the early morning hours of June 6.
Matt, 49, and Sweat, 35, escaped by crawling out holes they had cut in their cells walls, making their way down a catwalk and into the bowels of the facility and eventually through a steam pipe and out a manhole on Bouck Street in the center of the village.
After weeks on the run, Matt was gunned down by a federal Border Patrol Tactical Unit in a wooded area near Malone last Friday, and Sweat was shot and wounded and placed in custody after a confrontation with a State Police sergeant Sunday in Constable.
‘USED CONTRACTOR TOOLS’
To make their escape, the two inmates used power tools to cut their way through the steam pipe and made use of other tools smuggled to them.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo confirmed Sunday that Matt and Sweat used power tools that belonged to outside contractors who were working in the prison.
The tools were locked in a “gang box” on the catwalk that Matt and Sweat had access to, something that was first reported by the Press-Republican on June 16.
They apparently got into the gang box, used the tools and replaced them before they were discovered missing the next day, the governor said.
SUSPENDED CO
Officials believe Matt and Sweat had been working on and practicing their escape for weeks.
They were allegedly aided by civilian worker Joyce Mitchell, 51, who worked with Matt and Sweat in the prison tailor shop.
Mitchell allegedly told authorities that she smuggled hacksaw blades and other tools to the inmates to help them escape.
She put the saw blades in a package of hamburger and asked correction officer Gene Palmer to deliver the frozen meat to Matt in his cell a week before the escape.
Authorities say Palmer admitted to bringing Matt and Sweat items such as paint, paint brushes and a screwdriver and needle-nosed pliers as favors in exchange for information regarding prison fights, drugs and weapons.
He also accepted paintings from Matt, a talented artist; Palmer is charged with trying to destroy the works after the escape.
Palmer, a 27-year veteran officer, has been placed on unpaid leave from his $72,644 job by the State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
SUPPORTING PALMER
NYSCOPBA spokesman Miller said that Palmer is still a member of the union in good standing and has “our full support.”
The Inspector General’s Office has been interviewing staff and examining documents at the prison over the past two weeks in an effort to find out what went wrong.
Miller said the union is cooperating with the investigation and has representatives present with all members who are interviewed.
“We are letting the inspector general carry out the investigation, and we will see beyond Joyce Mitchell what varying factors were involved in all of this,” he said.
“Our biggest hope is that this investigation is independent and fair and the findings will help prevent anything like this from ever happening again.”
HOPES CRIES ARE HEARD
Correction officers have complained since the escape that staffing cuts and liberal policies from the state may have contributed to the escape.
As some of those restrictions, they point to:
• Two guard towers in view of the manhole cover on Bouck Street not being staffed at night due to staff cuts.
• State refusal, due to costs, to lock down and thoroughly search the prison after a major incident in the recreation yard about a week before the escape.
• A ban on flashlight use to check on inmates in their cells when doing night bunk checks.
The State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision did not respond to Press-Republican calls for comment.
‘MORALE UPBEAT’
Miller said the union has been vocal about the need for more staffing in the past, and he hopes those cries are heard and the entire system is thoroughly examined.
“During this whole thing (manhunt), there was no sense in pointing fingers by anybody. The capture and keeping everybody safe was the priority,” he said.
“Now we hope that everything will be on the table and all aspects are looked at.”
The morale of the officers remains upbeat despite the scrutiny of the investigation, Miller said, and the killing of Matt and the capture of Sweat has helped ease some pressure.
“It’s not an easy job to perform,” he said.
“These people are dedicated professionals who go to work in an environment that not everyone would do every day.
“When they go to work, they are surrounded by violent criminals, and they often don’t get enough credit for what they do.”