VALDOSTA —
The accidental release of three inmates from the Lowndes County Jail was an unfortunate incident.
While officials have not released the particulars of how the inmates went from being assigned for transfer to Lanier County’s custody to free men, the mix-up reportedly involved human error.
A Lowndes County Jail corporal released the inmates, said Lowndes Sheriff Chris Prine. The corporal has been reprimanded and reportedly demoted within the department.
Mistakes happen in every life. With no evidence of bad intent, a demotion seems penalty enough for an accident. We believe no jail official would intentionally grant an inmate early custody.
We do think authorities could have been a little more open with the public about the situation. Asked about the incident, Sheriff Prine readily said one of his officers had made a mistake.
Whenever an inmate escapes or is wrongfully released, no one should have to ask. Those in charge should immediately inform the public. The public has a right to know for safety reasons and, simply, because the public often assists in the search.
Authorities may claim that releasing names and photos leads to suspects deeper into hiding. It’s more often been our experience that the release of names and photos leads to suspects being taken into custody.
Take the three released inmates. They were released on Friday, July 23. Their names and photos were not released to the public until the evening of Tuesday, July 27. The Times posted the names and photos on our website that same evening. Their names and photos ran on the front page of our Wednesday, July 28, printed editions.
All three men were back in custody by Wednesday afternoon.
We may be wrong in assuming that making their names and faces public played a key part in the men’s return to custody, but it is an assumption based on evidence of experience.
The biggest mistake in the release of three inmates was not letting the public know sooner.
What We Think
What we think: Public has right to know
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