We're only about 60 miles from the prison and supposedly one of the escapees has relatives in my area. Many twists and turns in this story concerning Ms. Mitchell, however I don't believe she was the only one who assisted these 2 in their escape. The plan they hatched was extraordinary and I don't believe they left any details unturned, they had to have help, a lot of it. Especially regarding the tools they had access to. While Ms. Mitchell was supposed to have picked them up, I believe they had a plan B if she didn't show and are now long gone. I also believe had Ms. Mitchell picked them up, they most likely would've killed her too.

The reason I believe they are long gone, is because it would be very difficult to survive in the rough terrain they are in, it's wet, full of bugs and with out food, water and shelter, most likely impossible. There have been no reports of stolen cars, food, assaults, etc., or any suspicious activity in the area which makes me believe they are gone.

I seriously doubt they put all their eggs in this woman's basket. There was very likely a back-up plan otherwise they would have been found by now.

Or perhaps more likely, maybe Mitchell was never their plan A. They may have just been using and manipulating her to get them tools.

Also one big security breach at this prison was there was apparently no inventory taken of tools going in or out. So maintenance workers were bringing tools into the prison to do a job, and then no one was checking to see if those tools were coming out. That's just completely stupid. And that part of it is the prison's fault. This is supposed to be a maximum security facility. And these two guys managed to get power tools?

how did they get their hands on power tools, managing over a period of time to take them and put them back undetected. My husband works for a contractor and while he's never done work in a prison he has worked in large commercial facilities and tools are always locked up every night when work ends. I've read that it might not have been contractors tools that were taken, rather tools owned by the prison. Clinton Correctional has a large number of workshops throughout the prison, inmates make furniture, do carpentry, plumbing, work in the maintenance dept., as well as maintain the grounds, gardening etc. I'd be willing to bet that's how they got their hands on the power tools undetected. If so, it was a serious breach, as well as a # of other issues, such as the prisoners not be checked on during the night, no one was in the watch tower when they escaped and the relationship Ms. Mitchell had with them going undetected.

We pulled in in the truck to the garage. We unloaded our equipment. They searched our equipment. We painted. We got searched on the way out.

And a prison doesn't have similar rules? Crazy.

I believe with a former guard there who said guards used to patrol the catwalks they've been showing on TV as being part of the escape route, but then budget cutbacks caused a guard shortage so they quit patrolling those catwalks. Then contractors have come in to do construction work and have been known to leave power tools on those catwalks overnight. I don't know if that's what happened but it sounds like a possibility.

Aren't tax cuts great?! You wouldn't think NY would have trouble raising enough in taxes to keep the prisons secure given all the millionaires and billionaires there.

the first to get hit are the prisons, because unless you work in one, most taxpayers won't care. And it's a whole lot more popular than cutting funding for schools or anything the general public has a stake in.

I was a state employee for 32 years and my whole dept. was eliminated (I worked in social services, another dept. the public assumes is a waste, unless of course you need services) I was lucky that I had reached retirement age and while I could've stayed and been placed in some other dept. I was given an incentive to retire.

As for NYS taxes, we are the most heavily taxed in the country, yet it still is not enough. There is a lot of waste in state gov't, particularly in the upper echelons.

In fact, I'd bet they're as far apart as it's possible to get at this moment.

These guys thought this through right down to the last detail, wouldn't make sense for them to stay together.