ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A union representative says an officer had recognized that two New Mexico guards were fatigued the day a pair of violent felons escaped, and told them they could take naps as they worked a more than 18-hour shift transporting inmates across the state.
Miles Conway, a union spokesman, said Tuesday that the Department of Corrections telling guards to sleep while another drives "flies in the face of policy." His comments came about a month after inmates Joseph Cruz and Lionel Clah fled a prisoner transport van.
The guards logged more than 10-hour shifts in the days leading up to the escape in New Mexico, where Corrections officials have wrestled with a severe staffing shortage.
Officials are conducting an internal investigation into the escape. Conway says the union's review has consisted largely of consulting with its members.