It's happened again at the Delaware County prison.
Yet another inmate was accidentally released this week from the George W. Hill Correctional Facility, county officials confirmed yesterday, making for the sixth such incident there in recent months.
Gary Tagland, 21, was discharged Tuesday from the prison - even though he was supposed to be transported back to a New Jersey state prison, where he was doing five years for a robbery in Pennsauken.
"I don't know what happened. The prison is going to have to answer that question," said Deputy District Attorney Daniel McDevitt. He said a fax sent to the prison last month should have prevented "this very thing from happening."
Tagland, of Cherry Hill, was released the same day that county officials announced they were tightening procedures at the privately run prison in Thornton following the accidental release of five inmates - including an alleged killer from Germantown - in recent months.
"We have asked for a full investigation of the inmate-release procedure," County Council Chairman Jack Whelan said in a statement Monday. "A stricter, more fail-safe policy is already in place with more changes to come as the investigation continues."
The prison, operated for about $43 million a year by New Jersey-based Community Education Centers, disclosed last week that David Wilson, who was convicted of a firearms offense, and Ateia Polk, who is facing robbery and assault charges, had walked out of the prison due to clerical errors.
In June, murder suspect Taaqi Brown, 22, was released by mistake. He surrendered the next day. Wilson hasn't been apprehended.
The circumstances of the other two recent mistaken releases were unclear but Prison Superintendent John Reilly Jr., the county official who monitors CEC's performance, said they are back in custody.
McDevitt said Tagland was brought to Delaware County from a New Jersey state prison last month to face drug-paraphernalia and motor-vehicle charges from a Springfield arrest last year. He pleaded guilty to the drug charge.
"At that point, our case is closed and he should have been returned to New Jersey," he said.
Tagland was apparently re-arrested Wednesday by New Jersey authorities after he failed to turn himself in, McDevitt said.
It was unclear yesterday what led to the latest error. Reilly said last week that the company has had problems handling and interpreting incoming documents.
But in Tagland's case, there should have been no doubt about his status, because the D.A.'s office had faxed a notice to the prison before his arrival, McDevitt said: "It was supposed to be a fail-safe to let the prison know that the guy shouldn't be let go."
State Rep. Stephen Barrar, who represents portions of Delaware and Chester counties, said last week he plans to introduce legislation requiring public notification of escapes and accidental discharges.
CEC said yesterday that it is "reviewing and rapidly implementing major changes."
"This large-scale process involves the thorough investigation of many operational variables, the involvement and coordination of many entities, and has yet to be completed," CEC said.
