By CRIS BARRISH
The News Journal
11/04/2004
The gubernatorial task force investigating the July abduction and rape of a prison counselor by a serial rapist serving a 699-year sentence agreed Wednesday to hire a $175-an-hour consultant who once headed the Missouri prison system.
Members of Gov. Ruth Ann Minner's task force said the consultant, George M. Camp, could help them determine how security lapses contributed to the nearly seven-hour hostage standoff. The incident ended when a hostage team member hiding in the ceiling shot inmate Scott A. Miller to death at Delaware Correctional Center near Smyrna.
The task force does not have a budget, but the governor's legal adviser has told members they could spend state money on outside experts. Members, who have been asked to submit a report to Minner by the end of January, said Camp was qualified to help them fulfill their mission.
"He certainly has the credentials,'' said chairman Grover C. Brown, a former Chancery Court chancellor.
Camp is a principal with the nonprofit Criminal Justice Institute in Connecticut, a 25-year-old agency that consults and provides other services for prison systems nationwide. He is a former assistant commissioner in the New York state prison system and held several federal prison posts.
Reached at his Connecticut home Wednesday night, Camp said he needed to speak with members before commenting.
Minner created the seven-member task force Oct. 6, the same day the Department of Correction released an internal report that reached no conclusions and held no one accountable.
Minner had resisted earlier calls by attorneys for the victim, Cassandra Arnold, to appoint an independent panel. Arnold, 27, has since sued the state, alleging that security lapses, staff shortages, overworked employees and poor management put her in danger.
Wednesday's meeting, the second for the task force, took place at the Smyrna prison, where Miller passed through two security doors to reach Arnold's office area and abduct her.
The two-hour session, which included a presentation by corrections Commissioner Stanley W. Taylor Jr., was preceded by a private tour of the medium-high security unit where Arnold was abducted. Taylor previously gave the media a tour.
"I think we need better coordination between the corrections officers,'' member Tony Allen said after the tour.
Members did not press Taylor about security or other issues, but vice chairman Thomas P. McGonigle said he could be called back after more facts are gathered. "It was a good broad-brush presentation but we'll have time to drill down later,'' McGonigle said.
Arnold's attorney, Herb Feuerhake, said the task force appears headed in the right direction.
"What they need to do is get to the people with firsthand knowledge and cross-examine them on their version of events to get to the truth,'' he said.
Contact senior reporter Cris Barrish at 324-2785 or cbarrish@delawareonline.com.
