UTAH STATE PRISON — The Utah Department of Corrections said Wednesday it would not release the results of an investigation into an officer's slaying during an escape attempt by a white supremacist inmate.
The Utah Department of Public Safety's report on the death of corrections officer Stephen Anderson has been reviewed by corrections officials.
"Per standard procedure and in the interest of public safety, officer safety, personnel issues and given the pending criminal prosecution, the (Department of Public Safety) report has been designated 'protected,"' corrections spokesman Jack Ford said in a statement.
In an interview with the Deseret Morning News last week, DPS officials said they had looked at the details of the shooting and corrections policies. They declined to say if any corrections policies were violated that led to Anderson's death.
Corrections officials said they have implemented some policy changes in the aftermath of Anderson's slaying.
For example, there will now be a minimum of two guards for all prisoner transports, and all of those officers will, for the first time, be armed with Tasers.
"There will always be two (transport guards). We will always have the discretion to add more if we need. Those determined to be 'high risk' (inmates) will have three (guards) and possibly more," Corrections director Tom Patterson said Wednesday.
A prisoner's risk status now will be determined by at least two sources, he said.
"We're making sure we have at least two sets of eyes on re-evaluating the status of the offender," Patterson said.
Those people will be looking at items such as the severity of the inmate's offense and that person's risk factor.
"We'll be looking at the processes and procedures on how to identify those problems in advance," Patterson said.
The importance of wearing body armor also was being reiterated, he said. Other policy updates and reminders include having communication devices readily available and the use of "other" restraining devices.
The Department of Corrections also has said it is looking at video court arraignments for inmates instead of having to transport them and bringing medical staff to the prisons instead of transporting them to clinics.
Patterson said this does not end the shooting investigation.
"We want to evaluate as we go ... continually evaluate. We don't want to close the book on this," Patterson said. "This will be an ongoing review. We don't want this to happen again."
On June 25, police said Anderson, 60, was escorting inmate Curtis Allgier as he underwent an MRI at the University of Utah's orthopedic clinic. Prosecutors said Allgier, 27, overpowered Anderson and shot him in the chest and head.
Allgier then fled in a stolen SUV, leading police on a wild chase across the Salt Lake Valley that ended at a Redwood Road Arby's restaurant. Prosecutors said Allgier ran inside, put a gun to the head of an employee and pulled the trigger. He missed, and police said a customer fought off Allgier and disarmed him.
The inmate is now facing numerous charges, including aggravated murder, aggravated attempted murder and escape. Prosecutors said they intend to seek the death penalty against Allgier, who is being held without bail in the Salt Lake County Jail.
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