When most people think of prisons, they think of someplace they’re happy not to be.
But not everyone.
While we often we hear of inmates trying to break out of jail to freedom there are also
some who try to break in for any of several reasons.
Depending on their unique circumstances, they face different consequences for their actions.
Let’s find out what these could be in this episode of the Infographics Show, What Happens
if You Break into Prison?
First of all, just what happens to you if you either attempt to or successfully break
into a prison largely depends on who you are, your motivations, and what you did if you
were lucky enough to make it in.
Applicable laws may vary by state not to mention by country.
To find out what these consequences could be let’s look at some of the unlucky who
have attempted to navigate a jail’s defenses only to be caught and, in most cases, charged
and sentenced.
Sylvester Jiles, for example, had formerly served time for manslaughter but was released
from a Florida jail in 2009.
He lasted three days in the great wide open before apparently missing the feeling of being
boxed in.
He first approached guards with a simple request to let him back inside.
They obviously refused, after which he attempted to climb over the jail’s walls.
He may or may not have noticed the barbed wire on top before his climb, but it’s safe
to say he was well-aware of it after.
He got stuck in it and was caught.
Because he was out on probation, in this instance, he was in violation of his probation conditions
and was sentenced to 15 more years in prison.
While most would find this terrible news, we are sure he was quite oddly thrilled.
Then there’s Martin Ussery who, like Sylvester Jiles, apparently didn’t like being free.
Though instead of lasting three days outside bars, at least he made it to three years.
After being paroled from Folsom Prison in California in 2008 he was found in the grass
outside the facility in 2011.
His location was given away due to handy thermal technology which zeroed in on him as he climbed
a fence.
In this crazy world of crazies, we can almost believe his claims that he was just there
to reminisce about his previous stay.
However, it is much more likely that he was there in an attempt to smuggle in contraband
instead.
Unsurprisingly, he was charged and his bail was set at an impressive $1 million.
Let’s hope for his sake that any cash he made in his efforts to sneak things in amounted
to anything close to that amount.
In the case of Monique Armstrong, who was not out on parole, what she lacked in criminal
history she made up for with limitless stupidity.
Believe it or not, she actually called police before she attempted to gain unauthorized
entry to a Colorado facility.
She was able to navigate a chained fence and was trying to break windows to a building
when she was spotted.
All this was an attempt to get access to her 18-year-old brother who was not even in that
area of the property.
She asked to be arrested, and those in charge were all too happy to oblige.
This behavior earned her charges of criminal trespass and criminal mischief.
Her brother, on the other hand, who she’d gotten into all this mess in order to see
walked out just hours later on bond.
We’re guessing he had better sense and didn’t break back in to see his silly sister, thought
that would make a great story.
Then there are those willing to put their freedom on the line for friends as well as
family.
Patrick Rempe of Florida, for instance, was arrested after he got tangled in the wire
of a prison fence.
Though it was almost certain he’d be caught regardless.
If you’re curious why, we’ll tell you.
You see, before he’d started to climb the fence, he’d announced his presence by driving
his car into the prison’s front door.
It seems that Rempe was high at the time on a drug known as flakka and just wanted to
visit his buddies.
This was somewhat of a problem, however, since they were prison inmates.
He decided to pop in nonetheless.
Though, he really didn’t think it through, as he couldn’t navigate even one fence and
the prison had two.
Beyond these, there was the also the issue of a locked door.
Now what does driving high, crashing your car into a jail, scaling its fence, and fighting
back when caught get you?
Three felonies for criminal mischief, driving under the influence, and leaving the scene
of a crash with property damage.
Not to mention, aggravated assault and battery on a law enforcement officer.
In other words, it was really, really not pretty.
Facing these charges, he was held without bond, but fortunately for him this meant lots
of opportunity to catch up with those friends.
There seem to be fewer charges involved for those who attempt to bust into jail while
intoxicated when they don’t first crash their cars, destroy prison ground property,
or fight the police.
Tiffany Hurd, for example, faced only one charge in the case of drunkenly attempting
to enter The Butler County Jail in Ohio.
She was yet another who was stopped short by a rather inconvenient fence.
Again, like Monique Armstrong, she rather strangely requested to be arrested when found.
This was in spite of the deputy present repeatedly trying to convince her to go home.
It seems that not only breaking into prison but requesting to be thrown in jail happens
more often than you’d think.
Booze or not, due to her strange behavior she was given the misdemeanor charge of disorderly
conduct.
Let’s hope she didn’t make her situation worse with a repeat offense by attempting
to drink away her new problems.
Nicholas Celius of New Orleans tried to infiltrate the recreation area of a jail in 2018 for
much more nefarious reasons.
He was noticed but escaped only to abandon his backpack which was holding quite an impressive
stash of cocaine, marijuana, and heroine.
He was captured not long after.
In addition to resisting an officer he faced charges of drug possession and then there
was the matter of an outstanding warrant from the state of Texas.
While Celius had been nabbed, however, two others on the scene were not as easy for the
cops to pick up.
At the time of his arrest these accomplices remained at large as well as unidentified.
Then we have a strange case involving some alcohol in the country down under of Australia.
Apparently, it was here that in the summer of 2014 detainees were leaving its Berrimah
jail and then turning around and reentering.
While free they would go out and have some fun drinking.
However, they made sure to return each and every day before prisoners were accounted
for first thing in the morning.
Unfortunately for those involved, their activities were revealed when some of the men brought
attention to themselves by fighting over a cellular phone.
This left authorities in quite a confusing position as they tried to figure out what
charges they could level on the offenders for breaking out but then breaking back in.
Believe it or not, we have an even odder situation involving a planned break-in in Queensland,
Australia.
Here two young women in their twenties went to a restricted area outside a Brisbane correctional
facility and stood suspiciously by its fence.
They were discovered and the reason they gave for their actions defies all logical reason.
Apparently, the women had watched far too many episodes of a popular crime-based drama
called Wentworth and they wanted to know if real life prison was as interesting.
Though searched and found to have nothing suspicious on them, they still faced charges
of unlawful entry.
The event inspired a police officer to remind the public that correctional institutions
are serious places and not tourist destinations.
For Serhiy Vlasenko, his reasons for crawling under the fence of a prison made much more
sense and, as far as we can tell, got him no consequences.
Then again, he was a lawyer representing a former Ukrainian prime minister who was supposedly
being denied satisfactory health care behind bars.
In addition to allegedly skimping on medical treatment they must have also been trying
to save money with limited guards.
When Vlasenko arrived, there was no one there to let him in.
Or, as others believe, they were purposefully denying him entry with a rather peculiarly
timed break.
Whatever the reason, Vlasenko was less than patient.
Without anyone to give him access, the lawyer resorted to rather unlawyer-like behavior
by entering via the bottom of the fence.
The chief of the prison labeled this as voluntary trespassing.
Vlasenko, on the other hand, claimed that to see his client such actions were necessary.
Though he may have escaped punishment in this instance, the lawyer ultimately got hit with
other legal issues involving a messy divorce and alleged theft.
So, aside from obvious amusement, what can we take away from all of these unique situations?
Well, it appears at the very least that someone attempting to bust into a jail will be leveled
with is some type of charge for trespassing.
If they are drunk or high when they do it, they can be charged with disorderly conduct
or, in the unusual instance when it’s applicable, driving under the influence.
Doing things like attempting to break windows can get you hammered with an additional charge
of criminal mischief.
If breaking in to sell illicit substances you can add drug possession to the list.
And, of course, failure to cooperate once identified never goes over well and can get
you accused of assault and battery on an officer or attempt to resist.
If out on parole you can expect to land right back behind the bars that you came from.
Fortunately, for all involved, there is nothing technically criminal about being silly or
downright stupid.
And, not that you should need such a warning, but as these stories show, if you try to break
into a jail there are many reasons why you likely won’t succeed or get very far.
In the case of Nicholas Celius, for instance, the jail he attempted to breech had more than
800 cameras on hand.
With such thorough surveillance he really didn’t stand a chance.
Then let’s not forget the formidable prison ground fencing.
Its wires snagged Sylvester Jiles, Patrick Rempe, and Tiffany Hurd, among others who
would otherwise have successfully entered.
Then there’s things like locked doors, shatter proof windows, and thermal imaging technology
that work against potential intruders.
Of course, in addition to these things there are many other security measures in place.
And if you call the police beforehand or drive your car into the prison, you have pretty
much zero chance of evading detection.
Just when we thought criminals couldn’t been any stupider, they never cease to amaze
us.
Do you have any fun prison break in stories that we didn’t cover that you’d like to
share?
Let us know in the comments!
Also, be sure to check out our other video called Last 24 Hours Of A Death Row Inmate!
Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe.
See you next time!