Escape suspends work program

Two escapees were recaptured Tuesday.
LISBON -- Columbiana County Sheriff David Smith said Wednesday he has suspended the department's use of prisoners for menial work until he can better monitor their location.
The move comes after two trusties escaped and were recaptured Tuesday. They rode off on a tractor while mowing grass at the county jail.
Officials on Wednesday also revealed that a trusty took off Monday from the county courthouse and remains at large. That prisoner, William D. Keyes, 27, of East Liverpool, has been charged with escape, a fourth-degree felony.
Trusties, normally nonviolent offenders in jail on minor charges, traditionally do work such as clean and mow grass and trim bushes at some county buildings.
Keyes has an extensive criminal record. It was not immediately clear which charge he was being held on. He was recently indicted on a felony charge of assault for striking East Liverpool Patrolman Sean Long in the city's holding facility.
Recapture
The two jail inmates recaptured Tuesday were Michael E. Armstrong, 28, and Shawn M. Cunningham, 18, both of East Liverpool. They were serving sentences at the county jail for misdemeanor charges. They abandoned the tractor, stole a car and drove to a trailer park in St. Clair Township. When authorities raided the trailer, the pair fled into Beaver Creek State Park.
John Gamble, an assistant county prosecutor, said the sheriff's office hadn't contacted the prosecutor's office about charges against Armstrong and Cunningham.
Smith said the public appreciates the work the trusties do because it saves taxpayers thousands of dollars.
But Smith said he wants to find some way to better monitor the location of the trusties, such as with a global positioning device.