Experts: Relationships between prisoners, staff could be deadly

The big question many people seem to be asking after both the prison escape in New York and then in Anson County -- why would a prison employee help an inmate escape?

Channel 9 spoke to Dr. Bob Ruth, who has been a professor of psychology at Davidson College for 44 years. He says convicts could start by asking a small favor or making a guard feel special, but there could be much more to their intentions and it could be dangerous.

"Despite(guards') best intentions and best training, inmates get pretty good at setting up a con and being able to work that con," Ruth said.

He added North Carolina Department of Corrections used to require prison employees to read the book "Games Criminals Play."

"You can fall into all kinds of traps and pitfalls without ever having a clue that something is happening until it happens," Ruth said.

In Anson County, prison employee Kendra Miller is charged with having sex with inmate Kristopher McNeil. In New York, prison employee Joyce Mitchell was investigated for accusations of a sexual relationship with David Sweat; there was no proof found.

Despite the convicted murderers being locked up again, Ruth says these types of relationships between prison staffers and inmates could be deadly.

"A prison inmate has an awful lot of time on his or her hands … nothing to do but to think or engage in various activities or set up cons," Ruth said.

Prosecutors said with the case in New York, Joyce Mitchell, who is now facing charges alleging she helped two convicted murderers escape, the plan was for the men to murder her husband.

WSOC