Officer tackles him nearby, 2 others injured in pursuit By ROBERT SEARS The Patriot Ledger QUINCY - Jai Howell was in handcuffs and facing 18 months in prison when he bolted from Quincy District Court officers who were taking him to a holding cell. He didn’t get far, but two officers were injured chasing him shortly before noon Tuesday. The 24-year-old dashed from the second floor, down a flight of stairs, made a sharp right, then another, passing a bank of pay phones and a men’s room before bursting out of the building through a double set of glass doors meant for employee use only, triggering a shrill alarm. His wrists cuffed in front of him, Howell made it across the parking lot at the rear of the building and had gone about 300 yards to Washington Street when Court Officer Matthew Traft, 28, tackled him near McGrath Highway. A judge had just ordered Howell, of 48 Albertina St., to prison because he had been charged with assault and battery in Roxbury, which was a violation of his probation on a Quincy assault and battery conviction. Court officers escorting Howell to an elevator were distracted by two unidentified men who were following them closely, a Quincy police report said. An officer turned to ask them what they were doing, and Howell took off. Court Officer Tony Tufu, 58, chased Howell and hit his head on one of the glass doors, suffering a gash that required stitches. Another court officer, Mark Bradley, 36, injured a knee in the chase. Two Quincy police officers, Daniel Church and Michael Eddy, also joined the pursuit. Howell was charged with escape, assault and battery on a public servant and resisting arrest. Judge Mark Coven did not set bail, since Howell would be serving an 18-month sentence. A pretrial conference was scheduled for Feb. 27. http://ledger.southofboston.com/articles/2008/01/30/news/news18.txt
I bet that 28 y/o court officer was in great physical shape. I say that seriously, he probably was a blue shirt. So much for court security.
All the security in the world won't prevent a guy from bolting towards the exit sign. Unless it leads to an empty elevator shaft.
Quincy District Court is a security nightmare; they're good for 2-3 prisoner escapes per year. The building itself is actually a nightmare, they should blow it up and start over.
