POCOPSON — The Chester County Prison continues to operate without a permanent replacement for its former warden, who resigned a day before convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante escaped from the facility and drew the county into a fever of fear and apprehension surrounding prison security, as well as precipitating a massive police manhunt for the killer.
Ronald M. Phillips resigned on Aug. 30 after being put on administrative leave a month prior, and the members of the county Prison Board, in accepting the resignation of the four-decade veteran of the prison system, appointed former Downingtown Police Chief Howard Holland as the interim warden. That is where the county stands today, seven months later.
A county spokeswoman confirmed that no permanent replacement for Phillips has yet been hired.
“The interview process for a new warden is ongoing and the county is moving forward with all due diligence,” said Communications Director Rebecca Brain.
Meanwhile, Holland is moving forward, albeit slowly, with the security upgrades that were discussed in community briefings following Cavalcante’s escape and at subsequent Prison Board meetings.
Last week, Holland told the members of the board that progress had been made on installing additional security and surveillance cameras in the prison; establishing a K-9 unit at the facility in Pocopson in conjunction with the county Sheriff’s Office; establishing an Internal Affairs Office in the prison; and making infrastructure changes at the facility, among other items.
He also reported that there had been some progress made in filling the numerous correctional officer vacancies at the prison, in keeping with his timeline of getting closer to full employment this year. Seven candidates were in training to become officers, while five had graduated from the program, he said.
Brain said that as of Wednesday, of the 231 positions for correctional officers, there were 48 vacancies and 183 filled positions. That compares with 52 vacancies and 188 filled positions in August when Cavalcante escaped.
Meanwhile, the county Facilities Department last week got approval for a contract to put mesh screening up in the prison’s four exercise yards enclosing the underside of roof overhangs that could possibly be exploited by an inmate hoping to scale the walls and make their way onto the roof, as Cavalcante and another inmate, Igor Bolte, had done last year in breaking out.
That contract, with the S.J. Thomas Company, was in the amount of $129,837.
It was unclear whether the county commissioners intended to take action on a proposal for an entirely enclosed exercise yard project that was adopted by the Prison Board following Cavalcante’s escape. That proposal, which would put a roof over the now-open areas for outdoor recreation, was criticized at the time by the Pennsylvania Prison Board. It was estimated to cost between $2.5 million and $3.5 million.
Cavalcante was able to escape the prison on Aug. 31 by “crab walking” up the side of two facing walls in the entranceway to the exercise yard, running across the roof of the prison, making his way to the ground, and running to open fields without detection from a corrections officer whose duty it was to observe the open roof.
He was not recaptured until two weeks later after being hunted by more than 500 law enforcement officers in the county’s largest fugitive operation. He is now awaiting trial on escape, burglary and theft charges in Common Pleas Court.
Cavalcante, a native of Brazil who was in the country illegally and living in northern Chester County and Montgomery County, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the April 2021 stabbing death of his estranged girlfriend, Deborah Brandao. He was sentenced to life in prison plus five years without the possibility of parole.
To contact staff writer Michael P. Rellahan call 610-696-1544.
