Press Releases
Pasquotank Correctional Institution remains on lockdown after prison staff stopped an inmate escape attempt on Oct. 12 that resulted in the deaths of two employees.
Correctional Officer Justin Smith and Correction Enterprises Manager Veronica Darden were killed by inmates in the escape attempt. Ten other prison employees were injured. Correctional Officer Wendy Shannon, Correctional Officer George Midgett and maintenance worker Geoffrey Howe remain at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital for treatment for injuries suffered during the failed escape attempt.
The Department of Public Safety is taking immediate steps to make prisons safer following a violent attack at Pasquotank Correctional Institution in Elizabeth City that claimed the lives of two prison employees this week.
Two prison employees were killed and several others injured in an incident this afternoon at Pasquotank Correctional Institution in Elizabeth City.
Gov. Roy Cooper shared the following statement on the deaths of employees at Pasquotank Correctional Institution:
"Those who work in our prisons do a difficult and demanding job that is critical to our safety. We're grateful to these fallen prison employees for their service, and we offer our condolences to their families, friends, coworkers and community on this tragic loss."
STATEMENT FROM PUBLIC SAFETY SECRETARY ERIK A. HOOKS
The DPS family is devastated by the tragic events that took place at Pasquotank Correctional Institution. Our deepest sympathies go out to the families and co-workers of the employees who lost their lives in service to the State. We will do everything we can to support their families during this difficult time. I want to thank law enforcement and emergency responders for their assistance, and we will do everything we can to assist the investigation.
The Department of Public Safety is releasing the names of employees who died today at Pasquotank Correctional Institution.
Department of Information Technology Secretary and State Chief Information Officer Eric Boyette and Department of Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks delivered school supplies today to D.S. Johnson Elementary School in Rocky Mount as part of a drive organized by Governor Roy Cooper.
– The House and Senate of the North Carolina General Assembly will pass resolutions today honoring the 100th Anniversary of the 30th Infantry Division “Old Hickory”.
The 30th Infantry Division was officially established and activated on July 18, 1917, as an Army National Guard division drawing units from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. The 30th was nicknamed “Old Hickory” in honor of President Andrew Jackson, who was born near the borders of North and South Carolina and Tennessee, where the vast majority of its soldiers resided in.
Members of North Carolina Helo-Aquatic Rescue Team, known as NC HART, airlifted an injured hiker tonight from the area near Hunt Fish Falls in Avery County. The 70-year-old man suffered an injured hip and was unable to hike out. Deep in the woods, with darkness nearing and facing an extended hike carrying the injured man, local rescue crews requested assistance from the NC HART program. The HART crew hoisted the injured hiker into the aircraft, along with a local paramedic who was already providing treatment.
A Sanford Correctional Center inmate who left his work assignment on Sept. 14 is back in custody after being captured today.
Members of the McDowell County Sheriff’s Department captured inmate Micahel D. Clark (#1114140) in Marion at approximately 2:34 p.m.
Clark, 51, was on a work assignment as part of the inmate construction crew at Harnett Correctional Institution in Lillington when he was discovered missing.