A convicted killer with a history of violence remains at large more than two months after he and nine others escaped from the Orleans Parish Justice Center.
The FBI, Homeland Security, U.S. Marshals Service, and Louisiana State Police are actively searching for 28-year-old Derrick Groves, the last remaining fugitive from the May 16 jailbreak. A $20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to his capture.
“The Louisiana State Police continues to work alongside our local, state, and federal partners to investigate all information that may lead to Derrick Groves’s apprehension,” the agency said in a statement to WWNO. “Our focus remains unwavering, and we will not stop until Groves is in custody.”
Authorities said 10 incarcerated men escaped the Orleans Parish Justice Center in the early hours of Friday, May 16. They reportedly slipped through a hole behind a toilet, scaled the jail’s walls and ran across Interstate 10 before disappearing into nearby neighborhoods.
Their absence wasn’t noticed until a routine headcount hours later.
The breach has heightened concerns about security at the facility. At least 16 people have been arrested in connection with the jailbreak, including family members and two sheriff’s office employees. A maintenance worker is accused of helping the men by shutting off the water, which allowed them to remove the toilet and escape through the hole behind it, authorities said.
Nine of the 10 men — most of whom stayed in New Orleans after their escape — have been caught and are being held at the maximum-security Louisiana State Penitentiary. All are charged with simple escape, punishable by two to five years in prison, and have pleaded not guilty, WDSU reported.
Sheriff Susan Hutson suspended and then restarted her reelection campaign amid fallout from the situation.
Search for Derrick Groves
Unlike fellow escapee Antoine Massey — the ninth inmate captured, who posted videos online while on the run — Groves has kept a low profile.
The 28-year-old had been in jail since 2019. He was reportedly involved in four fatal shootings over an 18-month period. Last year, he was convicted of killing two people with an assault rifle at a 2018 Mardi Gras block party in the Lower Ninth Ward.
According to the Associated Press, multiple defense attorneys who have worked with Groves describe him as intelligent and polite. But prosecutors say he’s violent, manipulative, and remorseless.
“He’s the worst human being I’ve ever come across in my life,” said Forrest Ladd, an Orleans Parish assistant district attorney who prosecuted Groves. “But he is very charismatic, and I think that allows him the ability to kind of control people.”
Authorities say Darriana Burton, Groves’ on-and-off girlfriend and former Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office employee, helped him escape. They believe someone else is still helping him evade capture, but haven’t identified any suspects yet, according to the Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Brian Fair told NOLA.com they’re still getting tips on Groves from both in and out of state. Some of the tips seem credible, while others were more far-fetched, Fair said.
“Some people with survival skills will go camping, basically, for lack of a better term. Head off into the wilderness. I don’t think Groves is doing that, but if people are letting you stay at their place and you’re not coming out much,” said Deputy U.S. Marshal Fair. “Ultimately, I think we’re going to catch him. We only need to get lucky once. He’s got to look over his shoulder every day of the week.”
More than 90% of people who escape U.S. correctional facilities are recaptured within a year, but the longer they remain at large, the harder they are to find, Bryce Peterson, an adjunct professor of criminal justice at John Jay College, told the AP. However, Peterson believes Groves will eventually be caught due to all the media attention.
If he’s recaptured, Groves faces two life sentences without parole.
Changes to the jail system
The breach has raised questions about how the men — some charged with violent crimes — were able to escape the supposedly secure facility. After the escape, Gov. Jeff Landry ordered a review and overhaul of the state’s criminal justice system. Louisiana State Police and the Attorney General’s Office are looking into how the breach happened, and the Department of Corrections is conducting its own review.
Landry also asked the State Inspector General to inventory all pretrial detainees and those awaiting sentencing. He pointed to Groves’ case as an example of how delays in sentencing played a role in the escape.
“If he would’ve been sentenced by a court system, he most likely would not have had an opportunity to escape,” Landry said.
In a statement to WWNO, the Inspector General’s Office said it has completed its case file inventory and shared it with the governor and attorney general.
WWNO has contacted the other agencies to get updates on their reviews.
Much of the criticism has been directed at Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, the city’s first female sheriff, who was elected in 2021 running on a progressive platform.
Hutson has taken responsibility for the breach, but attributes the jail’s security problems to insufficient funding, a shortage of staff, poor infrastructure and other issues.
“These vulnerabilities have been raised repeatedly in our funding requests and now, the consequences are undeniable,” Hutson said in a statement shortly after the jailbreak.
According to the Times Picayune, New Orleans City Council members want Hutson to be more transparent about how her office is spending money it gets from the city, including the $65 million it received this year.
“It's time to put up or shut up, because I'm tired of us being blamed for not giving money when the sheriff is sitting on funds it hasn’t explained to the public,” Councilmember Joe Giarrusso, the council’s budget chair said, according to the newspaper.
Hutson temporarily suspended her reelection campaign in May, but has since filed to run. WWNO has contacted Hutson’s campaign to ask about her decision to seek reelection.
Hutson was recently held in contempt of court for allegedly ignoring a judge’s order to transfer arrestees to Magistrate Court on weekends and holidays.
She faces up to six months in jail or a $500 fine. A sentencing date was set for Aug. 4. Hutson plans to appeal the order, WDSU reported.
