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Omaha, Lincoln look at security
after inmates escape from jail
By Catherine Blalock
Staff Reporter
After security measures in Omaha failed to
keep inmates confined, officials evaluate secu
rity measures in Omaha and Lincoln jails.
On July 13, five inmates escaped fromdhe
Douglas County Jail, currently all but one arc
back in police custody.
Officials are still looking for Rodney Free
man, who was awaiting sentencing after being
convicted on May 26 of robbing an Omaha
restaurant and using a weapon to commit a
felony.
He has been named the “backdoor bandit”
because he entered through the back doors of
restaurants to commit these crimes.
In a telephone interview Monday afternoon,
Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning, gave the
following account of what happened.
Inmates were in the recreational area when a
fight broke out between two inmates, a fight that
is now believed to have been staged.
One of the inmates took a metal mop handle
off and pried open the fence. Inmates theft
jumped down 12 to 13 feet and escaped.
Due to this distahee to the ground several of
them received injuries. Freeman is believed to
have broken either an ankle, foot, or leg.
The public has helped in recapturing the
individuals, Dunning said.
Edward Goodwin turned himself in after
hearinghis mother’s plea on local news stations
for him to do so.
The inmates who escaped are Tim Claussen,
31 who was awaiting retrial in a 1992 killing;
Goodwin 23, who was awaiting trial on a mur
der charge in a May 15 shooting; James Coleman
III, 35, who was being held on sexual assault,
weapon and robbery charges; Freeman and
Johnathan Lessley, who was being held on
robbery and weapons charges.
In the 16 years the correction facility has
been open nothing like this has ever happened
before; and to ensure that it does not again,
officials are reevaluating security measures,
Dunning said.
Officials in Lincoln believe they have taken
all precautionary measures to keep this from
happening here.
Director Mike Thurber of the Lancaster
County Jail, where individuals awaiting trial or
sentencing are kept, said one of the most impor
tant things for any type of correctional facility is
to know everything they can about an inmate.
To ensure that they stay put, jail officials
have computerized surveillance equipment,
guards and a classifying system for inmates.
Inmates are classified on the basis ofwhether
or not they are an escape danger. Inmates are
also moved around from one cell to the next to
keep them from conspiring ways out with others.
In addition, jail officials do random searches
i of the cells to find anything that looks suspi
cious, Turber said.
r Even when officials do all of this — “If
there’s a way, they’ll figure it out,” he said.
No one has broken out of the Lancaster
County Jail.
The most recent attempt was made in Sept.
93 when inmates took an officer hostage. In
mates gave up after breaking out a window and
discovering they had no place to go, Thurber
said.
The Lincoln Correctional Center, which
houses individuals nearing the end of their sen
tencing, has experienced a more recent escape
attempt.
On June 29, at around 7:15 a.m. two inmates
who were dropped off for work release at the
Department of Roads located on Hwy 2, never
reported for work.
The two individuals were taken to their place
of employment. After being dropped off they
shed their green prison clothes leaving the civil
ian clothes they had worn underneath, Dave
Avery, superintendent of the correctional cen
ter, said.
The two inmates were not seen again until
afternoon when State Troopers spotted them at
the McDonald’s located near the airport, Bill
Hobbs, with the State Patrol said.
It is believed these individuals walked to
their destination, he said.
Currently, individuals do not have to be
escorted to their work release employment,
only dropped off, Avery said.
Each morning the corrections facility is re
sponsible for dropping off 75 to 100 inmates
who have been charged with burglary to first
degree murder, he said.
Each year an average of four to five inmates
walk off from their assigned job site, Avery
said.
“It happens a lot, but not that not often,” he
said.
—i B Tanna Kinnaman/DN
En Garde!
Cassidy Kovanda, (left) University of Nebraska-Lincoln arts and science
major, lunges at Tim Cherry, Lincoln High School student, in the
Cornhusker State Games fencing event at Whittier School Sunday.
Cherry upset Kovanda 15-14.
MATA unites Hispanic inmates, community
By Doug Kerns
Staff Reporter —
The Mexican Awareness Through Associa
tion cultural organization met in the Nebraska
State Prison on Tuesday, July 11.
MATA President Rudy Rosales stated that
the purpose of the organization is to “try to
make us aware of what’s happening. We’re in
tune with the same spirit.
“Due to the political climate,” Rosales said,
“it is time for people, us and college students to
be Chicano all year, not just during Chicano
Week.”
“We need each other for
support. We’re going to live by
what is in our hearts. ”
■
Riidy Rosales
MATA President
Present among the guests and volunteers
from outside the prison were Chandra Diaz,
President of the Mexican American Student
Association at the University of Nebraska-Lin
coln; Ed Munoz, teacher of criminology, race
and ethnicity, and UNL psychologist Dr. Marty
Ramirez.
Ramirez addressed the group of approxi
mately 50 inmates and warned against the harm
that can be caused by gossip and lack of infor
mation.
“It pains us to hear the things going on
between the groups. We are not immune,”
Ramirez said.
“We need each other for support. We’re
going to live by what is in our hearts.”
An upcoming event for MATA is the Mexi
can Independence Day Cultural Symposium on
Sept. 9, at the Nebraska State Penitentiary.
Planned speakers are activist, writer and teacher
Elizabeth “Betita” Martinez, and poet, journal
ist and author Luis J. Rodriguez.
MATA also has a video loan program with
films donated by film director and Public Broad
casting producer Jesus Salvador Trevino.
MATA was created in 1973 as a non-profit
organization focusing on preparing inmates to
return to mainstream society.
For more information on MATA, write P.O.
Box 2500, Lincoln NE 68542-2500, or calf
471-3161 ext. 3379.
