Four Days Trapped in Cell, Forgotten

I work in a place where there are policies and regulations up the wazoo. But sometimes the most basic things get forgotten and you wonder how. I would think that in a government building, security would automatically check every room to make sure it was cleared out at the end of the day. Some one could hide in any room, steal stuff or generally wreak havoc. Apparently the Washington County Courthouse isn't checked before closing. So that's how a woman spent 4 days locked in room.

Hour after hour, for four full days, Adriana Torres-Flores was locked away and forgotten in 8 1/2-by-9 1/2-foot cell in the Washington County Courthouse, with only a metal table, two benches and a light bulb that never went out. She had nothing to eat or drink. There was no toilet.

Wow, what a big mistake. A really big breach of security.

(Tim) Helder promised a thorough investigation and new safeguards - perhaps a video camera in the cell - to prevent a similar occurrence. Such a mistake had never happened before at the courthouse, although he believed that a janitor cleaning the cell had once gotten locked in by mistake, Hoyt said.

Yeah, I would think it would be a really good idea to review their security procedures. They were very lucky this time. Adriana could have died.

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