Murder suspect mistakenly released arrested

BALTIMORE (AP) — Corrections officials say a man awaiting trial for murder who was mistakenly released from a Baltimore jail has been arrested.

Mark Vernarelli, a spokesman for the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, said in an email that 30-year-old Rodriquez Purnell was arrested about 6 p.m. Thursday in west Baltimore.

Purnell was erroneously released Oct. 17 from the Maryland Reception, Diagnostic and Classification Center in Baltimore. He was awaiting trial in the shooting death of 27-year-old Terrance Rheubottom on St. Patrick’s Day last year.

Vernarelli says law enforcers and prosecutors will decide if Purnell will face charges related to his erroneous release.

One corrections employee has been placed on administrative leave after Purnell’s release, which officials have blamed on a lapse in protocol.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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