Prisoner Escapes from Courthouse, Last Seen Wearing 3-Piece Suit
A New York City man facing robbery charges escaped from the 12th floor of a Manhattan courthouse during a pretrial hearing today by simply walking out, surveillance footage shows.
Ronald Tackman, who turns either 55 or 56 tomorrow, was wearing a light-colored three-piece suit and apparently took advantage of being mistaken for a lawyer to make an unauthorized departure, according to the New York Daily News and the New York Post.
Citing an unidentified sources, the Daily News says Tackman sneaked down two flights to a prisoner holding area, where a guard asked him “Counselor, what are you doing here?” as he walked out.
Although the convicted felon reportedly has a history of prison escape attempts, Tackman wasn’t handcuffed or identified as an escape risk on an information sheet, the Daily News says.
“I went to court to see him this morning. When I got there, he wasn’t there,” his lawyer, Joseph Heinzmann, tells the Post.
Among those inconvenienced during a hour-long shutdown of the courthouse, as officials searched fruitlessly for Tackman, were Anthony Marshall and his wife, Charlene, the Daily News notes. They are still awaiting a jury verdict in a criminal trial concerning the estate planning for his now-deceased mother, heiress Brooke Astor.
Related earlier coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Jury Gets Case: Did Astor’s Son & Lawyer Try to Defraud Estate of $60M?”
