A man who escaped from the Hawaii State Hospital this morning is still on the run tonight.
Hospital staff reported that patient Casey Nies, also known as Casey Machado, was missing at 9:30am.
The 36-year old man was acquitted of attempted murder by reason of insanity in 2003.
Nies weighs 177 pounds and is 5-feet-11 inches tall.
Anyone who sees him should call police.
The Hawaii State hospital is not a secure facility, despite caring for many court appointed patients with violent pasts.
With the way the economy is right now, it doesn't appear any major improvements will be made to the Hawaii State Hospital any time soon.
"Unfortunately, unless there's a secure facility built, escapes like this will continue to occur," said Sen. Clayton Hee, (D) Kaneohe, Kahuku.
Escapes like the one that happened Monday morning.
"The neighboring community is always concerned because escapes impact them immediately. The reality suggests that the escapees move to other areas but that doesn't lessen the anxiety," said Hee.
The latest escapee from the state psychiatric hospital in Kaneohe was acquitted of attempted murder by reason of insanity in a 2003 Maui case.
According to a Star-Bulletin article, police said that Casey Nies cut someone's face with a samurai sword, then tried to attack a Maui police officer.
For years, Senator Hee has been pushing for the state to build a new secure facility at the Hawaii State Hospital.
"That fell on deaf ears unfortunately," said Hee.
The Hawaii State Hospital doesn't have the resources to be a prison, yet majority of its patients are court-ordered.
Patients like Adam Mau-Goffredo, the man accused of murdering three people on Tantalus.
"To me, that was the end of it, that we needed to try to do something about creating a more secure facility within the hospital grounds," said Hee.
But with the state of the economy the way it is, Senator Hee says that a new secure facility is an even lower priority now.
"Unfortunately with this kind of economy, the mentally ill will fall way behind. The sad reality is unless there's a secure facility built on the grounds these kinds of escapes will continue to occur," said Hee.
In addition, just like other state-run facilities, the Hawaii State Hospital may face budget cuts.
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1 comment:
There seems to be a disconnect between current laws and court decisions, and the realities of the situation at HSH. Perhaps appropriate legislators, judges, and AMHD personnel should get together and figure out how to fix it.
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