Arkansas prison employees fired after 'Devil in the Ozarks' escape
[July 11, 2025]
By ANDREW DeMILLO
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Two employees at an Arkansas prison where an
inmate known as the “Devil in the Ozarks” escaped have been fired for
policy violations, corrections officials said Thursday as they faced
questions from lawmakers who said the escape points to deeper problems.
The head of the Arkansas Board of Corrections told state lawmakers the
violations allowed Grant Hardin to escape from the Calico Rock prison
wearing a makeshift law enforcement uniform on May 25. But officials
have said there was no evidence employees knowingly assisted Hardin's
escape.
One of the fired employees had allowed Hardin onto an outside kitchen
dock unsupervised and the other employee worked in a tower and had
opened the gate Hardin walked through without confirming his identity,
Chairman Benny Magness said.
“If either one of them would have been following policy, it wouldn't
have happened,” Magness told members of the Legislative Council's
charitable, penal, and correctional institutions subcommittee.
Hardin was captured 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) northwest of the Calico
Rock prison on June 6. Authorities said he escaped by donning an outfit
designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Magness said the outfit
was crafted from an inmate uniform and kitchen apron dyed black using a
marker while a soup can lid and a Bible cover were fashioned to look
like a badge.
Lawmakers said the escape pointed to systemic problems beyond the two
employees — including how Hardin was able to fashion the fake uniform
without guards noticing.
“I think we’ve got major issues here that need to be dealt with,” said
Republican Sen. Matt McKee, who co-chairs the subcommittee.
Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway, near the
Arkansas-Missouri border, is serving lengthy sentences for murder and
rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary “Devil in the Ozarks.”
After his capture, Hardin was transferred to a maximum security prison
in Varner, a small community about 65 miles (125 kilometers) southeast
of Little Rock.
Hardin has pleaded not guilty to an escape charge and is set to go on
trial in November.
Hardin held a job in the kitchen in the prison and had not had any
disciplinary problems during his time there.
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This combo of images released by the Arkansas Department of
Corrections shows the recapture of escaped inmate Grant Hardin, an
ex-police chief and convicted killer, by Arkansas law enforcement
officers and the U.S. Border Patrol, June 6, 2025, near Moccasin
Creek in Izard County, about 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) northwest of
Calico Rock prison. in Calico Rock, Ark. (Arkansas Department of
Corrections via AP, File)
In addition to the uniform, Hardin fashioned a ladder out of wooden
pallets that were on the dock and also took peanut butter sandwiches
from the prison to survive on after his escape, corrections
officials told lawmakers Thursday.
Hardin planned to use the ladder to scale the fence and escape if
the gate wasn't opened for him, said Dexter Payne, director of the
division of correction.
“There are a lot of things he did unnoticed and unaware,” Republican
Sen. Ben Gilmore said during the hearing. “I don't think you can
blame just two people for that.”
Members of the panel also said Hardin's escape points to the need to
scrutinize a classification system that placed a convicted murderer
in what's primarily a medium-security facility.
Payne said a critical incident review of the escape planned later
this month may determine if other employees will face firings,
demotions or disciplinary actions. It also will determine what other
policy changes may be needed, he said.
State Police is also investigating the escape to determine whether
any laws, policies or procedures were violated in the escape. Col.
Mike Hagar, the head of state police and secretary of public safety,
said the final report on the investigation may be completed within
30 days.
Thomas Hurst, warden of the prison —formally called the North
Central Unit — said State Police was not notified immediately of the
escape though local police were, blaming it on a miscommunication.
“There’s nobody that’s more embarrassed about (the escape) than me,”
Hurst said. “It’s not good. We failed, and I understand it.”
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