Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office has released security footage of the moment Corrections Deputy Vicky White walked inmate Casey White out of jail... and never returned.
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The video shows White pulling up to the detention center's front entrance in her marked patrol car and heading in at about 9:30 a.m. She reappears calmly 26 seconds later, followed by the 6' 9" White, who is shackled, cuffed, and dressed in an orange jumpsuit.
As she holds the door open for him, she never glances back. She unlocks the back door of the car for the prisoner before locking it, jumping into the driver's seat, and driving away with a "waddling gait," as the US Marshals characterized it.
The patrol car was abandoned in a shopping center parking lot eight minutes later.
The US Marshals published an update on Wednesday, claiming that the couple may be in a 2007 orange or copper Ford Edge with slight damage to the rear left bumper.
"It is unknown what license plate is on the vehicle, or it may have no license plate," the Marshals said.
"The subjects should be considered dangerous and may be armed with an AR-15 rifle, handguns, and a shotgun."
Vicki White, the director, is now wanted to assist Casey Cole White in his escape allegedly.
Both the cop and the detainee are still gone, and investigators assume the two are on the run together.
Sheriff Rick Singleton verified his coworker's accusation of first-degree enabling or assisting escape at a press conference on Monday.
According to him, video footage shows the patrol car they left parked at an intersection two blocks from where it was eventually discovered abandoned. The footage was recorded at 9:49 a.m., and police believe the car departed the jail center around 9:41 a.m.
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"That's 8 minutes time spent. What that tells us is that the patrol car left the detention center and went straight to the parking lot. There was not enough time for them to even try to attempt to come to the courthouse, and then get out there and be at that red light 8 minutes later."
He added that when they left the jail, Casey White was chained and handcuffed in the automobile's rear.
According to the Sheriff, two vanloads of prisoners had been taken from the jail center just minutes before they vanished. Officer White then informed the booking cop that she was the only armed officer available and that she would transfer Casey White personally.
"That's why I'm sure the booking officer didn't question it — she, after all is her boss. And she coordinates all the transports," the Sheriff said.
"Casey White, as you've heard me say over and over, is an extremely dangerous person. And we need to get him located and get him off the streets."
US Marshal Marty Keely said that the fugitive's height of 6' 9" makes him difficult to ignore.
"There is the possibility that he has changed his identity as far as his looks, but he will stand out at 6' 9"," he said, advising anyone who sees them to steer clear and call 911.
"You shouldn't try to approach either one of these individuals," Keely said. "We consider both of them dangerous, and in all probability, both individuals are armed."
Vicki White could travel around the facility without arousing suspicion as Assistant Director of Corrections, so investigators are going back to see what encounters the two had at the jail and for any signs of a love involvement.
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According to Sheriff Singleton, White had been talking about retiring for three or four months, and her last day at work was set for Friday.
He said she had cash on hand since she had recently sold her property, and that she was entitled to a large sum of retirement money but had not yet completed the required paperwork.
"We know she participated," the Sheriff said. "Now, whether she did that willingly, or if she was coerced, threatened somehow to participate in this escape... not really sure. But we know for sure she did participate."
"We're checking to see what interactions they had, to see if there was any kind of relationship prior."
He said that when news of what had happened broke at the jail, "it was like a funeral wake."
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"This is not the Vicky White we know. She has been an exemplary employee," he said.
"They are devastated," he added of her colleagues. "We can just hope this has a good ending."
He agreed that she could be difficult to locate since her 27 years on the force had given her insight into how cops investigate criminals.
He agreed that she could be difficult to locate since her 27 years on the force had given her insight into how cops investigate criminals.
Sheriff Singleton also said that in 2020, staff discovered Casey White planning an escape and shook him down, discovering a shank in his hands.
While the policy of transporting a prisoner by two armed deputies has always existed, it was highlighted in White's instance because of his past escape attempt — something Deputy White was well aware of.
The Sheriff also stated that he had spoken with White's accused murder victim's relatives.
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"Her two sons had been through a lot of trauma the last six or seven years... we thought we had closure for them to a point, and now that's totally upside down," he said. "I can't imagine what they are going through, knowing that the man that killed their mother is out loose on the streets again."
Casey White, he added, could face the death penalty if convicted.
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"So he has nothing to lose," he said. "For his violent past, he is extremely dangerous. And I want to emphasize as much as I can: there's going to be some law enforcement officers somewhere in this country or somewhere in this state that's going to come across this guy. and I can't emphasize enough to our brothers and sisters in blue: Don't take any chances with this guy. He's dangerous."
The US Marshals are offering $10k for information leading to Casey White's capture.
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Vicky White, a former correctional officer, was caught on tape checking out of a hotel the morning she broke her capital murder suspect 'boyfriend' out of jail.
The 57-year-old can be seen pacing up and down the front desk of the Quality Inn in Florence, Alabama, as she waits for an operator to come to check her out, dressed in a black sweater.