Count Discrepancy and the Propped Yard Gate
At 22:45, during formal count in Building C, you count 119 inmates. The official count is 120. Inmate P, 41, minimum custody, is not at his bunk. His bunkie says P left for the law library around 20:30 and never came back. The law library closed at 20:00. The sallyport log shows no release or court trip. The control-room officer says the yard gate was propped open for trash pickup at 19:00 and he is not sure it was secured afterward. P is serving a 2-year sentence for felony DUI and has 45 days left. You are the count officer. The shift supervisor is in the control room. Post orders require a recount and notification of any count discrepancy before releasing the count. You have a radio and a flashlight.
1. What immediate actions do you take when the count does not match?
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Do not release the count as 'clear.' Announce the discrepancy to the control room, secure Building C, and stop all inmate movement. Recount the building yourself, then have a second officer recount; check for a miscount, a duplicate, an inmate in the shower or medical, and whether P was counted in another building. Confirm P's identity and description from the roster and photo. Check the law-library log, the sallyport log, and the control-room camera for the yard gate. Notify the shift supervisor immediately. The supervisor should order an emergency count of the institution and secure the perimeter if P is not located quickly. Do not send inmates to look for him and do not broadcast P's name over an inmate-accessible radio. The first 20 minutes matter because a minimum-custody inmate with 45 days left may walk rather than climb, but the gate being propped open changes the risk.
2. What notifications and search priorities should follow?
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Notify the shift supervisor, the control room, and the officer in charge; if P is not found in the building, the supervisor should notify the institution's duty officer and local law enforcement per escape protocol. Search in expanding rings: P's bunk and immediate tier, then the building, then the chapel, library, gym, and maintenance areas, then the yard and perimeter. Check the trash truck and the loading dock because the gate was propped for trash pickup. Preserve the gate and sallyport video. Check medical for an inmate who may have been injured, and check visitation and release logs. Because P has 45 days left, absconding is plausible, but so is a hiding spot or a trusty job. Do not assume escape until the institution is searched and the perimeter is checked. Document the time of each notification and each area searched; a later review will ask why the gate was not secured.
3. If P is found in the chapel closet 20 minutes later, what happens next?
Read the worked answer
Secure P, place him in restraints per policy, and do a medical check before moving him. Search him and the closet for contraband, weapons, or evidence of how he got in. Do not question him at length in the closet; ask only what is needed for safety, then let the investigator handle the interview. Determine whether he left the secured perimeter or only an unauthorized area. If he breached the perimeter or a secure line, escape or attempted-escape charges may apply; if he was simply out of place in an unsecured area, the response may be a disciplinary report and a custody review. Preserve the closet, any pry marks, and video. Write a report covering the count discrepancy, the search, the finding, and the times. The officer who found him should not coach him into a story. The gate being propped open is a separate security failure that needs its own report and supervisory review.