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ST. GEORGE — New details have emerged on how an inmate was able to escape from a Washington County jail.
It was a mix of mistakes by guards and the quick thinking of the inmate, according to the St. George News.
Washington County authorities told the News that guards at the Purgatory Correctional Facility failed to make sure the door to the temporary holding cell was properly closed and locked in August. A light intended to alert them of the problem malfunctioned.
The inmate, Joseph Anthony Graham, got through that to a locked door with an intercom panel and no cameras. He gave a fake name, saying he was a guard. Since there were no cameras, the guards couldn't see the truth and they let him out.
Graham repeated that process at another door and then he was free.
Now county officials are looking at whether it's time to upgrade the security system.
Graham, 21, was originally incarcerated on a misdemeanor warrant stemming from charges of domestic violence in the presence of a child, according to the Spectrum. Officers recaptured him in St. George the day after he left the jail.
