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HomeMy Public PortalAboutCrime: Jail EscapeTHE STAR -NEWS - THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 1994 Inmate escapes, captured An inmate at the Valley County Jail escaped Friday afternoon after scaling the fence of the jail's out- door exercise area, the Valley County Sheriff's Office said. The inmate, Victor Joseph Madrid, was captured later that evening hitchhiking on Idaho 55 north of Cascade, according to a sheriff's office spokesman. Madrid, 30, is being . held on $500,000 bond in the Valley County Jail. He was arraigned Monday on charges of escape and burglary stem- ming from the Friday incident. The escape was the first from the exercise compound, which is lo- cated behind the Valley County Courthouse in Cascade. The com- pound is enclosed by a tall chain - link fence that is topped with barbed wire. Madrid was hired by the U.S. Forest Service to work on the Thun- derbolt Fire, and after a routine back- ground check, officials discovered he had outstanding felony warrants in Washington for attempted aggra- vated assault and attempted first de- gree robbery. He was booked into the Valley County jail on Sept. 15, where he was awaiting extradition procedures. According to the sheriff s office, while Madrid was in the exercise area last Friday, the jailer left mo- mentarily to return another inmate to his cell, and Madrid made his escape. Madrid left his two-piece or- ange jail suit outside the fence, and presumably fled in his underwear. He is suspected of then breaking into a nearby home and stealing clothes before fleeing the area. Police officers from Valley County, Idaho State Police, and Cas- cade immediately combed the area, but were unable to find Madrid. A citizen later reported that a man fitting his description was hitch- hiking north of Cascade. Police found Madrid near milepost 121, and he attempted to run away from officers, but surrendered after a short chase, a sheriff s spokesman said. 4,Y►) 9/2-Wfr Jail escapee recaptured after six hours of freedom CASCADE — A 30-year-old Boise man who escaped at about 2:55 p.m. Friday was recaptured at about 8:45 p.m. Friday while hitchhiking on Idaho Highway 55 about 4 miles north of Cascade. Victor Joseph Madrid had escaped by scal- ing the 20-foot-high chain link fence sur- rounding the exercise yard behind the jail while a supervising jailor had taken another prison- er inside. The jailor was inside for less than a minute, according to the Valley County Sheriff s Department. Madrid had been arrested Sept. 15 at the Thunderbolt Fire Camp east of Cascade where he was part of a fire crew made up of indigent and homeless workers from Boise. He was originally arrested following a routine back- ground check that was done by Forest Service law enforcement officers. He was arrested when that check revealed he had an outstanding warrant for his arrest from the state of Washington for aggravated assault and robbery. Madrid was arraigned in Fourth District Court Monday on charges of escape and bur- glary. The burglary charge relates to Madrid's alleged breaking in of a residence from which he is alleged to have stolen a pair of blue jeans tscapee from page 1 shortly after the escape. Madrid was arrested by Sheriff s Deputy Scott Denning after he was spotted by ISP Officer Jim Eavenson hitchhiking north on Idaho 55 on the north side of Little Donner sum- mit. The escape from the jail is the first since the fenced -in exercise yard was constmcted two years ago. As a result of the escape, the jail was locked -down, and exercise priv- ileges were suspended pending com- pletion of an investigation into the matter. The lock -down was eased somewhat Monday evening with prisoners regaining some of their recreational privileges. Valley County Sheriff Lewis Pratt was out of town this week and Couldn't be reached for comment on the escape. and work boots. Following his escape, Cascade Police, Valley County Sheriff's Deputies and Idaho State Police engaged in a manhunt that had them scouring the City of Cascade. Officers were seen searching sheds, garages and outbuild- ings of homes in the vicinity of the jail. In addition, an airplane from Arnold Aviation was used to help with an aerial search of the area. Authorities also thought Madrid might have boarded one of two buses carrying fire- fighters to Boise that was seen leaving Cascade See Escapee on back page jail escapee pleads guilty, sentenced to 1 to 5 years instate penitentiary Policies on county jail operations changed as result of escape CASCADE — A Boise man who escaped the Valley County Jail Sept. 23 and recaptured later that same day, pleaded guilty to escape and was sentenced to at least one year in the Idaho State Penitentiary. Victor Joseph Madrid, 30, of Boise escaped from Valley County Jail by scaling a 20-foot-high chain link fence surrounding the exer- cise yard behind the jail on Sept. 23. Madrid was later captured when found hitchhiking on Idaho Highway 55 four miles north of Cascade. In Fourth District Court Sept. 30, Madrid pleaded guilty to an escape charge and waived his right to preliminary and pretrial pro- ceedings. Madrid was originally charged with burglary and escape, after allegedly breaking into a res- idence and stealing a pair of blue jeans and work boots. However, the burglary charge was dropped. Valley County Sheriff Lewis Pratt said Friday that an investi- gation was continuing into the pos- sibility that Madrid may have been aided by another inmate of the jail. That assistance may have been in acquiring a pair of blue jeans that Madrid was wearing when he was re -captured, Pratt said. Law enforcement officers originally thought Madrid had broken into a house near the jail and taken a pair of jeans. However, he said it was later determined that Madrid was wear- ing the blue jeans under his orange jail pants as he made his escape. Investigators are trying to deter- mine if the jeans may have been made available to Madrid by anoth- er inmate who had access to civil- ian clothing stored in the jail, Pratt said. Sheriff's department officers have also determined that an inmate who became ill in the exercise yard and was escorted inside by the lone jailor on duty in the yard — which provided Madrid the few moments he needed to scale the 20-foot high chain link fence surrounding the exercise yard — was not part of an escape plan. The incident has also brought about a change in policy at the jail, he said. Should an inmate become ill while in the yard in the future, Pratt said all inmates would be brought back into the jail. Pratt said the escape demon- strates the changing nature of the inmates serving time in the coun- ty jail. He said that at present, about 90 percent of the inmates serving time in the jail are felons who have served time previously and are "con -wise," "They know the ropes," he said. "It's not like the good old days." Such an escape will be very improbable once the new county jail is built, he said. That because the exercise yard will be constructed of concrete blocks to a height of 16 feet, and then the top yard will be covered with a chain link fence. That will provide for a secure area, but will also allow fresh air to cir- culate through the yard. The whole issue has put more strain on the jail staff, he said, which now has to be even more concerned with security of the pris- oners. District Court Judge George D. Carey sentenced Madrid to one to five years in the Idaho State Penitentiary on the escape charge. According to Valley County Prosecutor Larry Schoenhut, the case was unique in that the man was sentenced and in the state pen- itentiary by nightfall, that due to having Judge Carey in town that day. Madrid had been initially arrest- ed on Sept. 15 at the Thunderbolt Fire Camp east of Cascade where he was part of a fire crew made up of indigent and homeless work- ers from Boise. The arrest came as a result of a routine background check done by the Forest Service. That check revealed the existence of an outstanding warrant for Madrid's arrest from the state of Washington for aggravated assault and robbery. After his escape, Cascade Police, Valley County Sheriff's Deputies, and Idaho State Police engaged in a manhunt throughout Cascade, including an aerial search of the surrounding area. Madrid was arrested by Sheriff's Deputy Scott Denning after he was spotted by ISP Officer Jim Eavenson while hitchhiking. The escape from Valley County Jail is the first since the fenced -in exercise yard was constructed two years ago. '17 P SY'a r /1(S - 'a/oZolq,/ Valley jail escapee given prison term A Boise man has been sentenced to prison for escaping from the Valley County Jail on Sept. 23. Victor Joseph Madrid, 30, of Boise, was recently sentenced to five years in the state penitentiary with at least 18 months fixed as a result of his escape from the jail. Madrid escaped the jail by scaling a 20-foot chain link fence while the jailor was escorting an ill prisoner back to his cell. Madrid was captured that same day on Idaho 55 while hitch- hiking four miles north of Cascade. He was also charged with burglary after being suspected of breaking into a nearby residence and stealing a pair of pants and boots, but those charges were dropped. Madrid waived his rights to pre- liminary and pretrial proceedings. He pled guilty and was immediately sen- tenced. Police believe Madrid may have been aided by another inmate after it was discovered he was wearing jeans under his orange jail pants when he escaped. The Valley County Sheriff s Of- fice has since changed its policy where all prisoners must return to their cells in the case of an inmate becoming ill while in the exercise yard. The escape was the first since the yard was built two years ago. Madrid was originally arrested af- ter being hired to work the Thunder- bolt Fire on a fire crew made up of indigent and homeless workers from Boise. Forest service officials ran a rou- tine background check on Madrid and discovered he had outstanding war- rants for aggravated assault and rob- bery from Washington. In other court news, Jason Moore, 21, McCall, pleaded guilty to a mis- demeanor charge of possession of drug paraphernalia. He was fined $300 and $51.50 court costs. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail, which were suspended. He also received 100 hours community ser- vice and one year probation. Moore was arrested last July and charged with four counts of delivery of meth - amphetamine. William P. Weed, 38, of McCall, who was arrested in the same drug sweep that netted Moore, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of frequenting a place where controlled substances are known to be located. Weed was fined $51.50 for court costs, ordered to reimburse the county $200 for a public defender and $500 to the drug enforcement fund. He was sentenced to 36 days in jail with 30 suspended and credit for one day served, and one year probation. Weed also was ordered to attend two Alcoholic Anonymous or Nar- cotics Anonymous meetings per week and show the court compliance. Weed was originally charged with delivery of a controlled substance. The guilty plea to a lesser charge was part of a plea-bargain arrangement, according to the Valley County Prosecutor's Office. Star -News News Main News Page Page 1 of 1 Police capture McCall man wanted for probation violation A McCall man was arrested on Friday after being sought as a fugitive. Jason Larsen was arrested at a camp trailer parked on Lick Creek Road by the McCall Police Department on a felony warrant for violating his probation for drunken driving. Larsen, 34, was confronted twice this month by officers, but fled each time, prompting police to issue a pubic advisory. On Friday, a neighbor called police about 5:30 p.m. to report the camp trailer parked in front of a home at 613 Lick Creek Rd., Sgt. Pete Rittenger said. The neighbor had called the owner of the property, who said there should not be anyone on the property. When officers approached the trailer, they found two small girls inside who refused to come out, Rittenger said. Concerned for their safety, the officers prepared to break down the door when Larsen announced he was in the trailer and came out. He was arrested and taken to the Valley County Jail. The two girls, who ages were unknown, where returned to their mother, Rittenger said. It was not known if Larsen is related to the children, he said. http://www.mccallstarnews.com/pages/fp_stories_page.php 7/30/2015