Security, engineering blamed for escape
BY ALYSSA MEIER
Editor
A McLean County Jail inmate escaped the facility this week through a hole in the ceiling that officials were aware of, but told didn’t pose a security risk.
Washburn was on alert early Sunday morning after William Rawson, 35, was reported missing from jail. Rawson, who was arrested on Aug. 31 following a 8-hour pursuit throughout McLean County in a stolen vehicle, checked for nearby jailers before climbing through a hole in the dormitory bathroom ceiling.
The hole, which was the site of approximately four failed escape attempts in recent months, was inspected after staff became concerned about safety.
“Contacted contractor and engineer and they told us ‘Don’t worry about it, they can’t go anywhere,’” Jail Administrator Wade Krohmer said of the hole in the ceiling.
Krohmer said he was told inmates that managed to fit through the hole, which is in the bathroom area that is not monitored by cameras, would be able to access the gap between the ceiling and floor above and nothing more.
“Well that wasn’t true,” Krohmer said, explaining that Rawson pulled away a temporary cover on the hole and found his way to a maintenance closet that has a trap door in it.
