WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Jail retrains officers after inmate has gun

Jail retrains officers after inmate has gun

By Jody Barr - email

SUMTER, SC (AP) - A jail official in Sumter County says employees didn't search a South Carolina man who was later found with a loaded gun behind bars.

"Anyone that comes in and out of the detention center, all of their lives were in danger at that time," said the prison's assistant director, Daryl McGhaney.

McGhaney says it was pure negligence that allowed 19-year-old Mario Lloyd into jail with a gun.

Authorities say an inmate called the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to report Lloyd. Officers say they found a .25-caliber Beretta tied around Lloyd's waist, fully loaded.

"When you see over 50 inmates coming in and out per day, it's easy to miss one or two, and unfortunately that one cost us," said McGhaney. "That was a major one, and officers have to be alert at all times and not let their guard down."
    
McGhaney says when an officer booked Lloyd on August 21, that officer never searched the inmate. For the next four days, authorities say Lloyd kept the stolen handgun tied to himself.
    
Jail officials say strict policies are in place that would have prevented the security breach.

"When they get complacent, things like this will happen and it just goes to show that we cannot get complacent in a setting like this," said McGhaney.

Jail officials say they searched other inmates after they found the gun on Mario Lloyd. The jail also retrained all 80 officers after the incident.
    
The State Law Enforcement Division continues to investigate the incident. County officials say they're reviewing surveillance video to determine who's responsible and what punishment to hand out.

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