Alabama fugitive waives extradition from Indiana
Watch a news conference from Indiana in the player above.
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (KMIZ)
A capital murder suspect who led authorities on a manhunt that started in Alabama and ended in Indiana has waived extradition.
Vanderburgh County (Ind.) Sheriff David Wedding said at a news conference Tuesday that the sheriff's office will not publicly release when Alabama authorities will pick up Casey White, citing security reasons.
Vicky White, 56, a Lauderdale County Detention Center corrections officer in Florence, Alabama, was accused of helping Casey White, 38, escape from behind bars on April 29. Authorities found the couple Monday in Evansville. Vicky White died Monday after shooting herself while being apprehended by authorities, according to official accounts.
The couple had at least four semiautomatic handguns and an AR-15-style rifle when they were captured, Wedding said.
Vicky White claimed she was taking Casey White for a mental evaluation but one was never scheduled for him.
Vicky White served as an exemplary corrections officer for nearly 17 years and was set to retire on the day of the escape.
The couple traveled through Tennessee and abandoned a police car and an SUV during their escape.
Local media outlets in Evansville, Indiana, report the couple was found by law enforcement on Monday afternoon after being spotted near the Vanderburgh County Sheriff's Office in Evansville. Local U.S. Marshals were tipped off the couple was in the area from surveillance video at a local car wash taken on May 3.
The couple was spotted at a motel on Monday and then shortly after near the sheriff's office where a police chase ensued.
Wedding said the chase only lasted four or five minutes. Toward the end of the chase, Vicky White shot herself in her head once, Wedding said.
Casey White then surrendered to law enforcement without a fight after the Cadillac the couple was driving crashed and rolled. Wedding said during a late-morning news conference that a member of a U.S. Marshals task force rammed the Cadillac to end the chase after the fugitives drove through a parking lot and a field.
"We're surprised he didn't have a shoot-out," Wedding said. "I'm happy the case was solved rapidly. No one outside the suspects were injured or killed and we have the person behind bars."
Wedding told ABC 17 News Casey White could be facing a "litany of charges" including "flight from Alabama."
He says he hopes to return him as quickly as possible to law enforcement in Alabama.
After the chase, Vicky White was taken to a local hospital where she died on Monday just after 7 p.m.
According to the Vanderburgh County Corner's Office, White died at Deaconess Hospital and an autopsy is scheduled for 5 p.m. Tuesday. The office said more information will be provided following the autopsy.
Check back in for more details on ABC 17 News at 5 p.m. 6 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. for the latest updates in the case.
