Story Archive

Time to Think

“We’re tremendously sorry for what this man went through,” said Cara Smith, the Executive Director of the Cook County (Ill.) Jail. A man who had come at about 6:00 p.m. on a Saturday to visit his son at the jail “was told to proceed ahead and stay to the right to go to the visitor area,” Smith said. “He encountered a door that was propped open and he went in and the door shut behind him.” The unidentified man was trapped in a maximum security holding area, which is not used on the weekends, and no one knew he was there. About 1:00 a.m. Monday morning, after 31 hours of no food, water, or access to restroom facilities, the man came up with a way out. “Brilliantly,” Smith said, “he broke the sprinkler head off which alerted the fire department so they were able to identify where it was coming from and they went in and found him.” (RC/Chicago Tribune) ...Brilliant: breaking a fire sprinkler to summon help. Not so brilliant: taking 31 hours to come up with the idea.