A New Orleans jail worker received a 2.5-year prison sentence Thursday (Oct. 15) for enabling 10 inmates to escape last year. As previously reported, the inmates fled through a hole behind a toilet after custodian Sterling Williams turned off its water. Williams, who is 34, pleaded guilty to one count of malfeasance in office. The incident remains one of the largest jailbreaks in recent U.S. history.
In May 2025, after Sterling Williams shut off the water in a cell, 10 inmates removed a toilet, crawled through a gap in the wall and scaled a fence out of the jail. They left behind a scrawled graffiti note reading “To Easy LoL.”
Williams’ attorney, Michael Kennedy, said that the former custodian did not intentionally help the escapees but acknowledged making mistakes. Williams should have had a work order generated before shutting off the water for the clogged toilet, his attorney said.
“He does admit that he failed to follow protocol in a job as a public employee, and that it is possible that those actions aided in a plan hatched by 10 inmates to escape,” Kennedy said. “But again, without Mr. Williams’ knowledge.”
An additional 2.5 years of Sterling Williams’ sentence is suspended. Additionally, he will also receive three years of probation. Previously, the state dropped 10 charges against him of being a principal to aggravated escape. That charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in Louisiana.
All 10 of the inmates were eventually captured. However, one convicted murderer remained on the run for five months before officials discovered him hiding beneath a house in Atlanta. They are all facing charges of aggravated escape and are scheduled for jury trial in April.
Along with Sterling Williams, at least 14 other people were arrested and accused of aiding in the escape. Many of them are friends and family of the escapees. They allegedly aided by providing food, cash, transport, and shelter.
Earlier this year, a grand jury handed down a 30-count indictment against then-Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson for malfeasance, obstruction of justice, and falsifying public records. While Hutson is not accused of helping the inmates pull off the escape, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said a state probe found that Hutson’s poor management led to the jailbreak.
Additionally, Bianka Brown, the chief financial officer of the sheriff’s office, was also indicted on 20 similar charges. Hutson and Brown have pleaded not guilty.
Associated Press/Report for America’s Jack Brook contributed to this report via AP Newsroom.
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