Henderson Co. Jail staff reacts to Casey White’s escape

HENDERSON, Ky. (WFIE) - Several agencies have said Alabama inmate Casey White manipulated Vicky White to convince her to help him escape from jail.

Vicky White was a corrections officer for 17 years, which is part of what stunned authorities when they say she broke Casey White out of the jail where she worked.

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Several agencies have said Casey manipulated Vicky for years, which made him able to coerce her into something like this.

Henderson County Jailer Amy Brady says this is actually common behavior for inmates.

“They try to find officers that they can manipulate to form bonds with,” Brady said.

And she says, inmates typically target female officers.

“The majority of people that form relationships with inmates, I hate to say it, are females,” Brady said.

Brady says it starts with small favors, like giving inmates extra food.

Then it can escalate to providing items like drugs. In Vicky White’s case, it was an escape.

Henderson County Jail has special training for employees.

“They all go through inmate manipulation classes,” Brady said.

The classes teach employees how to spot it and stop it.

“How to handle situations, and how to report situations too if they see something,” Brady said.

The jail’s mental health provider, Jeff Harris, says jail employees interact with the inmates every day, and they do build connections, so Harris says inmates will try to cross the line to take advantage.

“We provide care for the inmates here and it’s natural for us to want to see them do better and have a different outcome in life than where they’re at, and a lot of times that can open the door to manipulation,” said Harris. “One of the things we have to be mindful of is constant training.”

Harris says that training puts a big emphasis on boundary setting.

“Inmates do manipulate from time to time and we just have to be aware of that and set solid boundaries so we’re not sucked in, so to speak,” Harris said.

In the summer, the jail is planning on bringing in a specialist out of California for more extensive training on manipulation.

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