MAQUOKETA -- Security changes may be in the works for the Jackson County Jail after two inmates escaped.
In February of 2017, two inmates escaped from the county jail in Maquoketa by prying open a gate. One that Chief Deputy Steve Schroeder previously said was a “rather large, steel gate with a hydraulic pump on it.” He said he thought it “would be virtually impossible” to pry it open.
Less than a week after their escape, the inmates were later captured in Clinton, Iowa.
According to a report by KCRG, the state inspector said the Jackson County Sheriff's Office needs to build a concrete wall at the jail.
The state inspector advised building an 18-foot concrete wall around the exercise yard to keep inmates in, according to the report. At the time of the escape, there was only a 12.5-foot fence with barbed wire.
The county will have to have its building plan submitted by May. There is no word on what funds would be used to pay for the security upgrade.