By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Gov. Mike Beebe gave a vote of confidence to the state prison director and Board of Corrections on Wednesday, a day after members of a legislative panel questioned the leadership of the prison system.

Some legislators have been critical of prison operations following a recent rash of serious incidents, including the May 29 escape of two convicted killers from the Cummins Unit, the shooting death of a parolee at the Tucker Unit and a January incident in which an inmate nearly died after he was left lying in his own feces over a weekend.

At a legislative meeting Tuesday, Prison Director Larry Norris said he was embarrassed by the incidents but that they did not point to a wider systemic problem.

Norris took questions from the Legislative Council’s Subcommittee on Charitable, Penal and Correctional Institutions. Some members of the panel suggested the state Board of Corrections failed to take appropriate action.

The House and Senate state agencies committees are scheduled to hold a joint hearing Aug. 10 at the Cummins Unit at Grady.

“The buck always stops at the top, like you always tell me,” Beebe told reporters Wednesday, adding that the prison board and Norris “have taken that same attitude.”

The governor said Norris has “responded appropriately” to problems at state prisons.

“I like the way he has been forthcoming. I like what he said about his own embarrassment about some of the failures, particularly as related to the escape,” Beebe said. “It’s a tough business down there, it really is.”

Six correctional officers were fired for failing to fulfill their duties and one officer was suspended for five days following the prison break in which convicted killers Calvin Adams and Jeffrey Grinder walked out of the Cummins Unit wearing guard uniforms and fled in a car waiting in the parking lot. They were captured days later in New York state. Three civilians are charged with aiding the escape.

Two correctional officers, a lieutenant and sergeant were fired and 15 other employees were disciplined for the January incident.

State police and the Department of Correction officials are conducting separate investigations.

Beebe said Wednesday those investigations were appropriate but he did not rule out calling for an independent investigation if he does not feel problems are being addressed.

“I’m not going to speculate on what I am going to do, other than to say I will follow it closely,” the governor said.

Sen. Steve Faris, D-Malvern, chairman of the Senate Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs, said Wednesday the purpose of the August meeting is to get better answers to lawmakers’ questions about prison problems.

“My intent in having that meeting at the prison is, number one, to get better answers to some of the questions that we didn’t get a complete answer to (Tuesday), and also to get the (prison board) chairman there and board members and go down to the site where the incident occurred,” Faris said.

Some lawmakers were not pleased that Correction Board chairman Benny Magness did not attend Tuesday’s meeting. Vice Chairman Mary Parker was at the meeting but did not speak. She told reporters later the board has complete confidence on Norris and does not micro-manage the prison system.

Beebe said Wednesday that the meetings between lawmakers and prison officials were “healthy” and beneficial.

“One of the worst things that can happen is if you have issues and you don’t bring them out in the open,” the governor said. “I suggested they air this in front of the appropriate committees and I think they’ll probably do it some more.”