http://www.latimes.com/nation/natio...scape-how-they-did-it-20150608-htmlstory.html

The inmates, who were in side-by-side cells, each cut a hole behind their beds in the back cell walls -- made of steel plates at least 1/4-inch thick -- and climbed out, officials said. They placed decoys, made of various items, in their beds to make it look as though they were sleeping with hoodies on when guards walked by to do their visual checks of the inmates every two hours overnight, according to officials. They were last seen by guards during a 10:30 p.m. standing count Friday and were discovered missing about 5:30 a.m. Saturday.

Who falls for the dummy head in the bed trick? Did they break out or did someone break in to get them?

 

Who falls for the dummy head in the bed trick? Did they break out or did someone break in to get them?

Well it sure worked in Alcatraz back in ’62, and probably every other time it’s been tried.

Just how long does it take to cut thru 1/4" steel to make a hole large enough to crawl thru?

How do you do it quietly?

 

And then after cutting through that, climb down 6 stories and cut through a 24" steam pipe and break a lock on a steam grate out in the middle of a street. What ever saws all blades they used, I want some of them!

 

Chances are the steam pipe is near a centurary old and possibly cast iron or something similar that can be got thru with nothing but a sledge hammer.

Of course they must have used a rubber sledge so as to not make any noise.

 

And then after cutting through that, climb down 6 stories and cut through a 24" steam pipe and break a lock on a steam grate out in the middle of a street. What ever saws all blades they used, I want some of them!

They used the ACME product instead of blades.

Also very popular in prison

 

When I first hear the story, what immediately came to mind was the movie "The Shawshank Redemption".

I'm very curious to hear about how they managed to this in the amount of time given and without attracting any attention. Were they, like the movie, working on this a little at a time over a period of days or weeks (probably not years, like the movie). What tools did they use? How did they know the layout of the prison and utilities enough to plan things. For instance, how did they know that steam pipe wasn't in use at all AND that it led to someplace that they could actually get out from the inside AND that that someplace was in a location that would let them escape the prison?

A lot of questions that need to be answered.

 

Well there is a simple test to see if a steampipe is in use or not: place your hand on it.

If you still have your hand after five minutes the pipe is not in use.

 

I remember when in school we had a similar problem. A man was in jail and only had a loaf of bread with him. How could he escape? The answer was very simple; he broke the loaf so he had two halves. He then put the two halves of bread together so it was whole again. He then climbed out through the (w)hole. Maybe this should be in the jokes section.

 

Also the broke through a 2 foot thick brick wall to get to the steam pipe. The steam pipe had a rectangular hole at each point of access. This was not done in one night. If this was a maximum security prison, think what's going on in a minimum security one.

 

Well there is a simple test to see if a steampipe is in use or not: place your hand on it.

If you still have your hand after five minutes the pipe is not in use.

So you would be willing to crawl inside a steam pipe for who knows how long based on the test that at the time you entered it it wasn't being used?

Admittedly, steam pipes that large are usually not going to be used cyclically.

But that brings up another point. They said that they got out of the steam pipe by busting open a grate. How many steam pipes have grates?

Was this really a steam pipe, or was it a drainage pipe?

 

Personally if I has any say in things maximum security prisons would be located underground, underwater at least 200 feet or on the moon.

The underwater and lunar ones having air locks that are free to leave through at any time of course.

 

But that brings up another point. They said that they got out of the steam pipe by busting open a grate. How many steam pipes have grates?

Was this really a steam pipe, or was it a drainage pipe?

Supposedly there was a hole in the prison and in the manhole. Many towns around here have a central boiler and clients pay for steam, like a utility.

 

Supposedly there was a hole in the prison and in the manhole. Many towns around here have a central boiler and clients pay for steam, like a utility.

I'm not picturing it. Do you mean that the "hole in the manhole" was a hole in the pipe that they cut from the inside of the pipe?

That brings up yet more questions. How easy is it to cut a hole through a steam pipe from within it? A 24" inch pipe doesn't give you much room at all to work. And how did they know when to stop within the pipe and cut their way out? Even if there was a valve or elbow or some other identifiable feature in the pipe within the manhole (pretty likely), how did they know about it? For that matter, how did they know that they wouldn't come up against a valve that was closed?

 

I just did a bit of searching and saw a picture of the hole they cut to get into the pipe. That doesn't look like a steam pipe to me. Looks more like a drainage pipe, perhaps for storm water?

While I was looking for that, I stumbled upon another article that once again highlights the medias lack of concern for getting a story correct. When I first heard the story (in a top-of-the-hour national news report on the radio) they stated outright that this was the first escape in the 150+ year history of this prison. Turns out that's a total load of crap and that there have been dozens of escapes from there over the years.

 

What do you want from the media ... They have a "get it to you first" attitude. That is no better then "reading something on the internet."

 

When I first heard the story (in a top-of-the-hour national news report on the radio) they stated outright that this was the first escape in the 150+ year history of this prison. Turns out that's a total load of crap and that there have been dozens of escapes from there over the years.

Reminds me of our local big name hospital near here. Some years ago they ran a radio ad saying that they have a excellent track record of never being sued for malpractice or the like.

The law firm who normally represented them at the time filed a false advertizing suit against them and won after showing they get sued at least weekly on average.

Now that's PR that money just can't buy! (Or hide.)

 

The law firm who normally represented them at the time filed a false advertizing suit against them and won after showing they get sued at least weekly on average.

So the law firm placed ethics above income. Now that is NEWS.

Of course, if it was the recently "terminated" law firm, it makes perfect sense.

 

I was wondering if lawyer-client confidentiality could come into play. If they only pointed out things that were in the public record, such as court dockets, then it's hard to see them running afoul of that.

 

So the law firm placed ethics above income. Now that is NEWS.

Of course, if it was the recently "terminated" law firm, it makes perfect sense.

I don't know the whole story behind it but no one believed their "We have never been sued for malpractice" advert anyway.

My personal guess was the law firm probably got tired losing suites and went for a easy win against their own client.
Lawyers will only represent the village idiot so many times before they too turn on him for being an idiot.