Police and jail administrators are investigating how a newly hired corrections officer at the Allegheny County Jail allegedly got through security last month with a gun, why it was not reported to supervisors and how the woman, who is reported to have a previous criminal record, got hired at the facility in the first place.

Bethany Hallam, a longtime Jail Oversight Board member, said the employee — who graduated from the county jail’s academy less than a week before the incident — was walked out of the jail and suspended earlier this week, as were multiple other employees.

Hallam also reported that the woman, who appears to have mistakenly left the gun in her purse when she reported to work that day, did not have a permit to carry a concealed weapon. She also is a person prohibited from having a gun in the first place because of a prior criminal record.

“How did she get hired at the jail if she can’t pass the background check,” Hallam asked. “You have to pass a gun qualifier to get hired.”

The employee has not been publicly named.

Hallam asked Warden Trevor Wingard about the incident during Thursday’s monthly board meeting.

His only response was: “That matter is under investigation.”

Late Thursday, Wingard told TribLive that he could not comment on the details of what happened.

“I’m aware of what Ms. Hallam brought up tonight, and it’s being investigated by the Allegheny County Police,” he said. “I’m waiting for their report.”

According to Hallam, the woman graduated from the jail’s academy on Feb. 20, and the incident occurred on Feb. 25. The suspensions did not occur until this week, Hallam said.

On Feb. 25, the new employee arrived at work and entered the jail through the employee entrance, which includes a metal detector and X-ray machine. Hallam said she is unsure whether the woman was screened, but she entered the facility and made it into the jail when she realized she still had her gun in her purse.

The woman then returned to the employee entrance, explained what happened and was told to go secure the gun in her car, which she did, before returning to work.

“It was definitely a mistake,” Hallam said. “The problem is one: it wasn’t discovered; and two: it wasn’t reported through the appropriate channels.”

Jail protocol, she continued, would be for that information to go up the chain of command.

“Everyone knows it happened,” Hallam said.

Hallam later learned from jail staff that the woman didn’t have concealed carry permit and is prohibited from having a gun.

A spokesman for the county police confirmed the investigation.

“We were requested to investigate an incident last week where an employee was able to make it through the initial layer of security — the initial screening process — with a firearm,” said county police spokesman Jim Madalinsky. “It is a criminal investigation.”

Madalinsky did not have a time frame for when charges could be filed, but said any charging decisions would be made in consultation with the district attorney’s office.

President Judge Susan Evashavik DiLucente, who chairs the Jail Oversight Board, did not respond to a request for comment.

Common Pleas Judge Kelly Bigley, a member of the board, said the allegations are shocking.

“Obviously, they need to do a thorough investigation and get to the bottom of how someone got hired with a criminal background and how someone could accidentally come into the jail with a weapon, and then make sure both situations never happen again.”

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