Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Bullard says an inmate attacked and disarmed a correctional officer taking him to court early Tuesday afternoon. The inmate, who has not yet been publically identified, was later shot by a deputy responding to help.
The sheriff reports the incident unfolded in the sally port of the courthouse. After disarming the correctional officer during a brief struggle, the inmate allegedly fired the weapon. The deputy inside the courthouse who witnessed the attack on the video surveillance system rushed from the first floor to the sally port in the basement. Bullard says to protect the life of the Correctional Officer and himself, the deputy confronted the armed inmate and was forced to fire his weapon.
Deputies and Correctional Officers from the Sheriff’s Office, plus officers of the Mt. Vernon Police Department responded to the courthouse and assisted with safely securing the scene.
The inmate was injured by the gunfire and transported to a local hospital by EMS personnel, and later transferred to a St. Louis Hospital for treatment.
The Deputy was uninjured, but still evaluated at a local medical facility and released. The Correctional Officer sustained minor injuries and was treated at a local hospital and released.
Bullard says as standard procedure, the Illinois State Police (ISP) was contacted to investigate the officer-involved shooting and other circumstances surrounding the escape attempt. The Sheriff’s Office will be running a parallel personnel investigation alongside the ISP investigation.
As the primary investigating body, the state police will be making an official press release on Wednesday with more details.
Sheriff Bullard and the rest of his staff express their heartfelt gratitude for the assistance by all agencies involved. They are thankful for the safe outcome of the involved JCSO employees. Further, while we don’t condone the actions of the inmate in the slightest, Bullard says their prayers go out to his family as they handle this difficult news.
