Judicial center escape attempt goes nowhere

Jordan Ramey was recently charged with escape and criminal mischief for trying to break out of a holding cell at the Whitley County Judicial Center.

A Williamsburg man’s recent alleged escape attempt from a holding cell at the Whitley County Detention Center didn’t result in freedom, just more criminal charges.

Jordan Lee Ramey, 21, of Wolf Creek, and other inmates were placed in a judicial center holding cell on Aug. 29 when the alleged escape attempt took place about 10:35 a.m.

“Ramey removed a ceiling tile and attempted to escape through the crawlspace. The ceiling tiles, however, serve a cosmetic purpose. There is no path for escape from the holding cell through the ceiling,” Whitley County Sheriff Colan Harrell said in a release. “During the failed escape attempt, damage was done to wiring and the ceiling.”

Sheriff’s Court Security Capt. Brian Kirby charged Ramey with second-degree escape and first-degree criminal mischief.

Ramey allegedly did several thousand dollars worth of damage to the ceiling of the cell, Kirby wrote on the arrest citation.

Ramey was returned to the Whitley County Detention Center where he was already being held on a $20,000 cash bond stemming from his Aug. 8 arrest by Williamsburg police.

Ramey pleaded not guilty to the new charges during his arraignment Tuesday morning before Whitley District Judge Fred White, who set a $25,000 cash bond in Ramey’s new case.

White also appointed the public advocate’s office to represent Ramey and scheduled a Sept. 12 preliminary hearing in his case.

Ramey was at the judicial center on Aug. 29 for a preliminary hearing on charges of first-degree burglary, defacing a firearm and carrying a concealed deadly weapon by a prior felony offender that stemmed from the Aug. 8 arrest.

After testimony by Williamsburg Police Sgt. Brandon White and witness Jennifer Ross, Judge White ruled there was enough probable cause to forward the case to the grand jury on the burglary and defacing a firearm charges.

The concealed carry of a deadly weapon charge was dismissed at the request of the commonwealth’s attorney’s office.