ESCAPE FROM
DAVID SWEAT AND RICHARD MATT
WHEN TWO DANGEROUS INMATES BUSTED OUT OF A MAXIMUM-SECURITY NEW YORK PRISON, THE AUDACITY OF THE PAIR LEFT THE STATE REELING
Just like every other morning, on the morning of 6 June 2015 the inmates waited for the block officer to walk by so their names could be added to the ‘rec list’, granting them two hours outside in the yard. Although it was summer, it felt more like the very first days of spring. Fat white clouds dragged sluggishly across the sky, fragmenting the sunlight. The air, mild and thin, was as refreshing as a cold beer on a hot day, especially after being cramped in a cell for so many tedious hours. Most of the inmates were accustomed to going to the yard every day simply as a way to break the monotony of their drab schedule, but when the weather was nice it became something they looked forward to, not just part of their routine.
They waited and waited to put their names on the list. Most of the inmates owned small flat screen TVs that they rarely switched off, despite the limited channel selection – after all, what else was there to do? A few times, officers with looks of dread and worry on their faces frantically rushed past the cells, their uniformed figures blurring between the bars. But the inmates thought nothing of it, except maybe that the officers were purposely forgetting to bring the rec list around just to mess with them.
While they waited, many of them watched the local news – one of the few featured channels – which usually broadcasted dull stories about jaywalking and car accidents that happened overnight in the quaint prison town. But that morning “Breaking News” flashed in bold letters across their tiny screens, grabbing their attention. The white walls they were so used to staring at, the ones barricading them from freedom, appeared on the screen with an energetic reporter exclaiming, “Two inmates have escaped.” Before they could learn anymore about what had happened, the screens all blacked out.
