Escaped Convict Loose in Town

In case you haven't heard about the convicted murdered who escaped from a local maximum security federal prison and is running loose in our community, please read about it at The Town Talk.


Before we all jump on the bandwagon of playing "Monday morning quarterback" and take cheap shots at the Ball Police department for releasing escaped convict Richard McNair, let us not forget the more important question, "Why was he able to escape in the first place?" No law enforcement agency should be held to greater accountability for trying to capture the escapee than should the Federal Bureau of Prisons for allowing him to escape.

In years gone by the construction of new prisons in small communities was seen to be a blight and a threat to public safety. However, in recent years the economic impact has far overshadowed any perceived threat largely due to the assurances of greater technology. Richard McNair did not escape from the minimum security work camp. He escaped from the state of the art maximum security federal penitentiary.

Before any new prison begins receiving inmates in Pollock, the Federal Bureau of Prisons should give the public notice of steps being taken to insure their safety and also reimburse local law enforcement agencies for the enormous costs of manpower and resources expended to apprehend a convict from their facility.