UPDATE: Thursday, April 19, 2012

Kansas prison officials have removed all inmates housed at a county jail after four inmates escaped, including a convicted murderer who remains at large.

Department of Corrections spokesman Jeremy Barclay said Thursday
that the remaining 18 prison inmates who were being held in the
Ottawa County Jail because of prison overcrowding have been returned to the state prison in Ellsworth.

Barclay says the temporary decision was made after four inmates escaped Wednesday morning from the jail in Minneapolis, a small
town about 120 miles west of Topeka.

Two of those men, including a convicted killer, were still missing Thursday.

Barclay says the move is temporary as the department investigates the escape and reassesses placing inmates in the jail.

Kansas allows some county jails to house prison inmates under state contracts to help alleviate prison overcrowding.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

A spokesman for the Kansas Department of Corrections says it is discussing supplemental training for staff at county jails that house state inmates.

Department spokesman Jeremy Barclay said Thursday that the informal discussions have been prompted by the escape of four inmates from the Ottawa County Jail in Minneapolis.

Two were apprehended Wednesday. But two others, including a convicted murderer, remained at large Thursday.

The four inmates were sent to the Ottawa County Jail because of overcrowding at the state prison in Ellsworth. Five counties, including Ottawa County, have passed a state inspection and are certified to house state inmates.

Barclay said the state respects the training provided to county jail staff and has considered it when certifying jails to house state inmates.