The policy change went into effect immediately after detention officers found a loaded handgun inside a seat cushion attached to a prisoner’s personal wheelchair.
Personal mobility aids are no longer allowed inside the Harris County Jail after a loaded pistol was found inside a prisoner’s personal wheelchair, where the gun had been hidden for more than a month.
The policy change went into effect on Nov. 26, immediately after detention officers found the handgun inside a seat cushion attached to a personal wheelchair used by 53-year-old Tyrone Kennedy, who was arrested in late October. According to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, they discovered the gun after receiving an anonymous tip.
Hours after the gun was discovered, an internal memo was sent to all jail staff outlining the policy change for handling medical mobility aids. According to the new directive, all medical mobility aids would be “thoroughly searched” when the prisoner is booked, “removed from the possession of [the] arrested individual and stored for safekeeping.”…