Recently there have been heavily publicized jailbreaks in both New Orleans and in nearby Tangipahoa Parish.
The New Orleans jailbreak has received national news coverage because ten inmates escaped from the Orleans Parish Jail. It is believed to be the second largest jailbreak in the entire recorded history of Louisiana.
Eight of the ten New Orleans escapees have been recaptured, but two are still on the run. Officials have expressed confidence that they’ll eventually catch the remaining escapees.
In Tangipahoa Parish, an inmate escaped for the second time. He fled the jail in 2024, was recaptured, and then escaped again last week and was recaptured. In both the New Orleans jailbreak and the Tangipahoa escape, officials have pointed to security lapses. In the New Orleans escapes, the security lapses were almost mind-boggling. The ten inmates escaped at 1 a.m. on May 16, and the jailbreak wasn’t discovered until the next morning. These weren’t shoplifters, either. Some of the escapees were charged with murder. Yet their escape wasn’t even noticed for almost 8 hours.
With both jailbreaks top of mind for many Washington Parish residents, it is only natural that there’s a question about the security of the Washington Parish Jail in Franklinton.
There have been occasional escapes from the Washington Parish Jail over the years but fortunately they’ve been few and far between. And the Washington Parish escapees were recaptured and returned to jail.
Washington Parish Sheriff Jason Smith, who took office on July 1, 2024, said security measures are working well at the parish jail, and he pointed to his personnel as the reason why.
“Although our jail is the most overcrowded in the state per capita and has some serious physical limitations,” Smith said, “we have made a lot of progress since last July in putting the onus of responsibility on our Corporals and Sergeants.”
The sheriff added, “They are our frontline supervisors and they do the most to prevent the problems that we are seeing when there is a breakout in other places.”
Smith said he believes proper training is also an important reason for the jail’s security.
“We have made training a priority and we have made a lot of progress in recruiting new people since last July.”
A recent attempted escape from the Washington Parish Jail was foiled when the inmate trying to escape couldn’t get past a block in a duct and returned to his cell. Jail personnel responded immediately and Smith said this was a good example of how his team in the jail handles incidents such as this.
The Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office continues to recruit good candidates for deputy positions, and anyone interested can check out the website at wpso.la.gov.
With both the New Orleans and the Tangipahoa escapes receiving very heavy news coverage, almost everyone in Washington Pairsh is aware. At both the Sheriff’s Office and the Franklinton Police Department, personnel are on the alert for any possible sightings of the escapees.
Franklinton Police Chief Justin Brown said, “Our officers are familiar with the escapees and although unlikely, we are on the alert should they decide to venture this far north.”
He added, “I would surmise the escapees feel most comfortable in an environment which is familiar to them.”
The chief said, “As a matter of conjecture yet verifiable through life experience, Washington Parish has an unofficial communication network which rivals that of the CIA. A person's business will be five day old news in a two day news cycle around these parts. With that, an escapee being able to successfully infiltrate the parish undetected, for any reasonable amount of time would be a feat worth mentioning.”
“Should this ill advised feat be accomplished, my moral opinion would render such a person at a significant disadvantage. You see, a cow can't get out around here without most people knowing about it; now fancy yourself an escapee from New Orleans who somehow found themselves in Pine, Louisiana. Whereas the cow’s future and that of the farmer are given the utmost consideration, I wholeheartedly doubt the same care and concern would be afforded to the escaped inmate.”
But, Brown noted, “This of course is not an open invitation to be a vigilante --- that would be irresponsible advice. It is however a harbinger of things to come should our citizenry be faced with a leakage of crime from our southern neighbors. As always, report suspicious activity but always be prepared to protect what is most valuable to you.”
