Warren County Sheriff Brian Zeybel escorts Michael C. Burham into the Warren County Jail on June 19. P-J file photo

Pennsylvania state Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren, is among representatives pushing five separate bills dealing with jail safety and infrastructure improvements after three recent jail escapes that include Michael Burham from the Warren County Jail.

Co-sponsorship memorandums for the five bills were introduced Friday. The bills include strengthening consequences for those who escape or attempt to escape from county jails, additional funding for local jails, a review of jail practices when an escape happens, a bill allowing local jails to hire off-duty correctional officers from other areas if a county jail is short-staffed and improvements to public notification when an inmate escapes from jail.

“In the near future, we plan to introduce a package of legislation to address a recent rash of county jail escapes in Pennsylvania,” Rapp and fellow Republican House Representatives Sheryl Delozier, Craig WIlliams, John Lawrence and Michael Stender wrote in their co-sponsorship memorandum. “In 2023 alone, Pennsylvania has seen multiple jail escapes in counties such as Philadelphia, Warren and Chester. These escapes involved incredibly dangerous inmates, including those charged or convicted of murder. Public safety demands attention to this threat. Our bills will not only deter and punish future escapes, but will help equip counties with resources and personnel needed to keep their communities safe.”

FOUR ESCAPES THIS SUMMER

Burham’s flight from the Warren County Jail started the rash of escapes. The Russell man, a suspect in the murder of Kala Hodgkin of Jamestown, escaped from the Warren County Jail by climbing onto exercise equipment to crawl out a window onto the roof of the jail before using bedsheets to get to the ground. He spent a week hiding in Warren County until he was discovered by a dog owned by Ron and Cindy Ecklund of Jackson Run Road. Tucker alerted the Ecklunds to something near a creek on the Ecklunds’ property, which led the Ecklunds to call the Pennsylvania State Police to bring the manhunt to an end.

It was the second lengthy manhunt for Burham, who hid in and around the Warren area following the May 11 murder of Hodgkin before kidnapping a couple, stealing their car and driving to South Carolina.

Burham was charged before his July 7 escape from the Warren County Jail with two counts each of kidnapping, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, simple assault, harassment, recklessly endangering another person, terroristic threats, disorderly conduct and single counts of possession of an instrument of crime with intent, theft, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, receiving stolen property, burglary, criminal trespass – enter structure, criminal trespass and loitering and prowling at night time as well as four additional counts of kidnapping — two each under subsections on hostages and kidnapping committed during the course of felony – criminal trespass, two counts of theft and changing a count of terroristic from a misdemeanor to a felony.

During the manhunt, more than 200 state, federal and local officers took part in the search.

The latest escapee is Danelo Cavalcante, a 34-year-old convicted of first-degree murder last month in the 2021 killing of his ex-girlfriend. According to the Associated Press, he escaped from the Chester County Prison, a county facility, in suburban Philadelphia by making his way to the jail yard, scaling a wall, climbing over razor wire and jumping from a roof in a breakout that wasn’t detected by guards for a full hour. He remains on the run. Cavalcante had been sentenced to life in prison but had not been transferred to a state prison before his escape from the county jail.

‘REINFORCE PUBLIC SAFETY’

Specific language for the House Republicans’ bills is still being drafted.

Williams’ bill would require a greater portion of the state’s Justice Reinvestment Initiative be directed toward county jails.

Williams wrote in his co-sponsorship memorandum that money saved through the JRI program was supposed to be dedicated to public initiatives to increase public safety, with the Chadds Ford Republican saying current state spending on county corrections is insufficient to deal with county jails’ infrastructure issues, needed security improvements, staffing shortages and the hiring and retention of qualified correctional officers.

“Our legislation will require that a greater portion of the JRI savings be directed to fund our county jails to address these shortcomings, improve security, and promote the safety of inmates and staff,” Williams wrote.

Rapp’s bill will prevent a paroling authority from prematurely releasing an inmate convicted of release, attempting to escape or helping an inmate escape. Her bill would also require a mandatory probationary period be applied to the end of an individual’s maximum sentence to make sure they are properly supervised after their release.

“It is clear that individuals who escape or attempt to escape while incarcerated are not rehabilitated and represent a genuine threat to the public,” Rapp wrote.

Lawrence, R-West Grove, calls for a full security and staffing review by local officials, the Pennsylvania State Police and other law enforcement agencies when escapes occur or are attempted. The state Department of Corrections would then be required to issue a report that includes specific recommendations to address security or staffing issues that helped lead to the escape.

“By understanding current shortcomings, we can hopefully avoid similar escapes occurring in the future,” Williams wrote.

The fourth bill allows counties to hire off-duty correctional officers from other counties or the state Corrections Department to augment their staff.

“As a result of severe staffing shortages, many of our county correctional facilities are unable to devote sufficient manpower to the observation, supervision, and security of inmates housed in their facilities,” wrote DeLozier, R-Camp Hill, in her co-sponsorship memorandum. “The inability of counties to staff their jails with an adequate number of qualified guards has predictably led to a number of crises, including a surge of prison violence and several high-profile inmate escapes.”

The final bill, sponsored by Rep. Michael Stender, R-Sunbury, mandates increased public notification so community members can take action to remain safe while also making the public aware of an escapee’s physical appearance and other attributes. Stender proposes creating the Pennsylvania Dangerous Inmate or Escapee Alert System be established and maintained by the State Police while functioning similarly to the state’s Amber Alert and Missing Endangered Person Advisory System.

“This package of legislation will strengthen the consequences for inmates who escape or attempt to escape while incarcerated and help ensure and reinforce public safety in communities across the Commonwealth,” Rapp and her fellow lawmakers wrote.