Two convicted murderers are wandering somewhere, as Florida prison authorities admitted Thursday they accidentally released the inmates.
A Franklin Correctional Institution worker told USA Today that she wasn’t allowed to comment on the matter.
But the two inmates — Charles Walker and Joseph Jenkins, both 34, both from Orlando — seem to have strolled from the jail “in accordance with Department of Corrections’ policy and procedure,” Department of Corrections secretary Michael Crews said, to CNN. “However, both of their releases were based on fraudulent modifications that had been made to court orders.”
Jenkins walked out on Sept. 27 and Walker, on Oct. 8, CNN said.
The Florida Department of Corrections’ online database still lists both men’s release as “pending,” USA Today reported.
Walker was sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder and started serving time on April 16, 2001. Jenkins has been serving time since June 12, 2000, for first-degree murder and for other unspecified charges. CNN reported that Jenkins was given a 50-year sentence for a 1998 murder and armed robbery, and faced more years behind bars for an earlier auto theft.
CNN said prison authorities consider both men escapees. The prison hasn’t released additional details about the incident.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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