Update: November 1, 2021. Illinois State Police have released surveillance video footage of the attack and shooting. Watch it here.
By Kaitlyn Alanis
The Charlotte Observer
MOUNT VERNON, Ill. — An inmate who was taken to court attacked a correctional officer while they were inside the sally port of a Mount Vernon, Illinois courthouse, officials said.
Following a “brief struggle,” the inmate disarmed the officer and then fired the weapon just before 1 p.m. Tuesday in an attempt to escape, according to a Facebook post from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
A deputy witnessed the attack on video surveillance while inside the courthouse, the sheriff’s office said. He then rushed from where he was on the first floor to the sally port in the basement. A sally port is where people in custody can be transferred to and from transport vehicles.
“To protect the life of the correctional officer and himself, the Deputy confronted the armed inmate and was forced to fire his weapon,” the post says. “The inmate was injured by the gunfire. Immediate assistance was requested.”
More deputies and correctional officers from the sheriff’s office responded, along with officers from the Mount Vernon Police Department, to secure the courthouse.
Medical responders took the inmate to a local hospital, and he was then taken to a St. Louis hospital for treatment, according to the sheriff’s office.
Officials say the deputy was not hurt, and the correctional officer had minor injuries. Both were evaluated and then released.
Illinois State Police, alongside the sheriff’s office, is investigating the officer-involved shooting “and other circumstances surrounding the escape attempt.” Illinois State Police is expected to release more details Wednesday.
“Sheriff (Jeff) Bullard and the rest of his staff express their heartfelt gratitude for the assistance by all agencies involved,” the sheriff’s office said. “They are thankful for the safe outcome of the involved JCSO employees. Further, while we don’t condone the actions of the inmate in the slightest, our prayers go out to his family as they handle this difficult news.”
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