By C.J. Lin
Times-Picayune
JEFFERSON PARISH, La. — A man who pushed an officer down and escaped while being transported to the Jefferson Parish courthouse last week was captured Wednesday, the Sheriff’s Office announced.
Lum Jones, 23, of 536 Emile St., Marrero, was arrested inside a hotel room in the 2100 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard in Kenner. He was booked with simple escape. Three others also were arrested.
Donna Guillot, 20, and Jherinique Jamison, 17, were booked with being accessories to simple escape. Guillot, of Marrero, was the driver of the waiting car that Jones jumped into after pushing down a Concordia Parish correctional officer, according to Maj. Anthony Christiana, a spokesman for the Gretna Police Department. An investigation found that Jamison, of Westwego, obtained the hotel room where Jones was found, Christiana said.
Shontel Chandler, 15, of Avondale, also was arrested and booked with possession of marijuana; she had several municipal warrants against her. She allegedly smuggled crack cocaine to Jones while he was in custody in Concordia Parish, according to officials.
The relationship among the suspects is unclear, U.S. Marshal Mark Gunnot said.
“This is still an ongoing investigation,” Christiana said. “This particular event was orchestrated and well thought out, so this investigation is continuing and more arrests are anticipated in this particular case.”
Because Jones was taken out of the Concordia Parish vehicle outside the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center’s sally port, it was relatively easy for him to get away. Usually, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office cars drive inside the gated sally port to bring prisoners to the jail. Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand said the sally port is available to police cars from other jurisdictions.
“We have fervently put out that the sally port is available,” Normand said Wednesday. “I can make it available, but it doesn’t mean that they’re going to utilize it. But the (Concordia) sheriff indicated that they very much want to utilize it from this day forward and will, which will certainly help avert this type of situation when they have assistance of others in trying to help with escape.”
Jones escaped March 18. He had been driven from Concordia Parish to Gretna for a court date at 24th Judicial District Court. He had been charged with two counts of battery of a police officer, simple burglary, simple escape, possession of narcotics with intent to distribute near a school and aggravated flight from a police officer, stemming from incidents in December 2007 and September 2008. He apparently freed himself from his restraints on the drive to Gretna and was able to get away once a deputy opened the car door.
He shed his prison garb, jumped into the waiting vehicle and escaped.
Jones was arrested without incident Wednesday about noon by members of the Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force and the West Bank Major Crime Task Force after officers received a tip that he was in the hotel room, said Sgt. Larry Dyess, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office spokesman.
“We’ve not only been able to get our hands around him, we were able to get our hands around the co-conspirators relative to this as well,” Normand said. “That brings a closure to this incident.”
Copyright 2009 Times-Picayune