Shackled N.Y. prison worker waives hearing; manhunt continues

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[h=4]Shackled N.Y. prison worker waives hearing; manhunt continues[/h]The prison employee at the center of a sensational prison escape faced a court hearing Monday in northern New York as the manhunt for two escaped killers slid quietly into a tenth day. Joyce "Tillie" Mitchell,

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DA Andrew Wylie says Joyce Mitchell likely knew little about what the two escaped convicts from the Clinton Correctional Facility were planning to do on the outside when she allegedly helped them escape from the prison more than a week ago. (June 14)


Joyce Mitchell is led from Plattsburgh, N.Y., City Court after a hearing on June 15, 2015.(Photo: Andrew Burton, Getty Images)


The prison employee at the center of a sensational escape waived her preliminary hearing in a northern New York courtroom Monday as the manhunt for two killers quietly rolled into a tenth day.
Joyce "Tillie" Mitchell, 51, wore a black-and-white-striped prison jumper, a bullet-proof vest, leg shackles and handcuffs as she trudged, head down, into Plattsburgh City Court. Mitchell waived a preliminary hearing during the brief appearance. Her case was sent to Clinton County Court.
Mitchell faces felony counts that could bring more than seven years in prison on charges that she supplied hacksaw blades, a punch, a screw driver bit and other tools to inmates Richard Matt, 48, and David Sweat, 35.
The tailor shop instructor at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora also is accused of agreeing to be the pair's getaway driver following their escape in the early hours of June 6. Authorities say Mitchell had second thoughts and failed to follow through on a plan that may have involved to a cabin hideout deep in the Vermont woods.
Prosecutor Andrew Wylie says Mitchell told investigators she decided not to flee with the men because she loved her husband and did not want to throw her life away.
Wylie also has said Mitchell was previously investigated because of a complaint that she had developed too close a relationship with Sweat. Wylie said there had been insufficient evidence to pursue that claim.
On Monday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo instructed state Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott to "conduct a thorough investigation to determine all factors potentially involved in the escape."
Cuomo said prison design, operations and security were among issues that would be scrutinized.
"Capturing these killers and returning them to state custody remains our top priority – however, it's critically important to examine the circumstances that enabled these inmates to escape in the first place," Cuomo said.
Hundreds of federal, state and local authorities continued to comb the rural area along the borders of New York, Vermont and Canada. Schools around the prison did reopen Monday as locals attempted to bring normalcy back to their lives.
But all was not normal. U.S. Marshals went from home to home in nearby Cadyville, and New York State troopers and correctional officers lined the two-lane roadway that leads toward the prison.
The Saranac Central School District was open, but announced an "enhanced" law enforcement presence at schools. An the district suspended all outdoor activities.
People are nervous, but they understand the situation," Plattsburgh Mayor James Calnon told USA TODAY. "People are still living their lives. Just cautiously."
Authorities are stressing that local people should keep doors and windows locked — and report any suspicious activity, Calnon said.
"People are really grateful that there are 800 people out there doing their job and protecting all of us," Calnon said.
But it's not clear how long that presence can be maintained. And it isn't clear at all where the inmates are hiding.
"We don't know if they are still in the area or if they're in Mexico by now," Cuomo said Sunday.
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