Protocol breached during murder suspect’s release

BALTIMORE (AP) — Corrections officials say a breach in protocol led to the accidental release of a murder suspect in Baltimore.

Thirty-year-old Rodriquez Purnell was released Friday from the Maryland Reception, Diagnostic and Classification Center.

He was awaiting trial in the 2013 shooting death of 27-year-old Terrance Rheubottom. He also had been convicted of assaulting a corrections worker.

The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Corrections received a tip from a citizen on Sunday night about Purnell.

The department said in a statement Tuesday that staff members are required to perform multiple checks on inmates before they are released. It said Purnell was let go because procedures were not followed according to department policy.

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 This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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