Police searching for teen murder suspect who escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

[The Bobster]

Police searching for teen murder suspect who escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

The 17-year-old inmate, Shane Pryor, escaped from CHOP's ER parking lot on Wednesday, according to police.

www.cbsnews.com

Police searching for teen murder suspect who escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia​

By Joe Holden, Alicia Roberts, Nikki DeMentri, Stephanie Ballesteros

Updated on: January 24, 2024 / 11:28 PM EST / CBS Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A teenage male inmate charged with murder escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Wednesday.

Philadelphia police said 17-year-old Shane Pryor fled from CHOP's ER parking lot at 34th and Spruce Streets, around 11:56 a.m.

"When staff pulled up in the driveway of Children's Hospital, we now know through video evidence, as the male was exiting that car, he was able to escape from staff and run from this area on foot," Frank Vanore, the Deputy Commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department, said.

Shane Pryor Philadelphia Police Department
Pryor is described as a Black male, of light complexion, about 5 feet 7 inches tall, and weighing 180 pounds. He was last seen wearing a blue sweater, blue sweatpants and no shoes. He was last seen heading toward University Avenue and Civic Center Boulevard.

Pryor's mother is begging her son to turn himself in to authorities.

"I want him to turn himself in and Mommy is going to continue to fight for him the way that I was fighting for him," Pryor's mother said. "I want him to turn himself in so he don't get in more trouble. Just know we're going to fight his case and get other resources that are actually going to fight for him in hopes that he doesn't get a life sentence or charged with more because he ran away because he's just scared. He's a kid. He's been in there since he was 14, he still has a 14-year-old mentality, even though he's 17. He's been in there since he was 14. He's just terrified."




Police say Pryor was brought to CHOP for treatment concerning a hand injury. Officers and K9s have been searching extensively around CHOP for the 17-year-old, including inside buildings and parking garages.

The U.S. Marshals Service believes Pryor might be driving a stolen Ford F-150 with a Pennsylvania tag: ZTS-0503.


It's unclear if Pryor was handcuffed while in the vehicle, but police say he was not cuffed when he escaped.

Pryor was charged with murder in October 2020, according to court documents.

 

[The Bobster]

18-year-old charged for helping escaped Philadelphia prisoner Shane Pryor flee: police

A search for escaped inmate Shane Pryor enters its third day and now a teen who allegedly helped him is facing charges.

www.cbsnews.com

18-year-old charged for helping escaped Philadelphia prisoner Shane Pryor flee: police​

By Joe Brandt, Howard Monroe, Joe Holden

Updated on: January 26, 2024 / 9:21 AM EST / CBS Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- An 18-year-old was charged for helping Philadelphia escaped prisoner Shane Pryor flee and giving him a ride, authorities confirmed to CBS News Philadelphia on Friday.

Michael Diggs, 18, is charged with hindering apprehension, escape, criminal use of a communication facility and criminal conspiracy.

Pryor, a 17-year-old inmate at the Juvenile Justice Center, broke away from staff in a parking lot at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Wednesday afternoon after being taken there for a hand injury.

Police say Diggs picked Pryor up in a cream-colored Ford on Wednesday after his escape from custody. It's not clear when or where the pickup happened.

Later on Wednesday, Philadelphia police say they stopped the Ford and detained Diggs for questioning.




Sources told CBS News Philadelphia Pryor wasn't restrained or handcuffed en route to the hospital before he got out of a vehicle and fled.

The search for Pryor is now in its third day.

Pryor is still awaiting trial for the Oct. 10, 2020 murder of Tanya Harris in the Holmesburg section of Northeast Philadelphia. Pryor's mother has maintained that a co-defendant in the case, not Pryor, was the shooter.

She and Paul Dimaio, Pryor's attorney, have both said he is running because he is scared and believe he is innocent.



Pryor's mother and lawyer say they haven't heard from him.

Pryor faces murder, conspiracy and weapons charges in the shooting that occurred when he was 14 years old.

On Thursday, the U.S. Marshals Service released video showing Pryor inside the CHOP Hub for Clinical Collaboration on Civic Center Boulevard - across the street from the parking lot where Pryor got away.


Sources previously told CBS News Philadelphia's Joe Holden that Pryor contacted someone and got a ride from them, and they dropped him in the area of Broad Street and Glenwood Avenue around 6:15 p.m. Wednesday.

We're working to confirm if this person facing charges Friday is that same person.

Police say Pryor is 5 feet 7 inches tall, 150 pounds, and was last seen wearing a blue sweatshirt.

A $5,000 reward is being offered for any information leading to his arrest.

 

[The Bobster]

Inmate Shane Pryor wasn't handcuffed or restrained before he escaped in Philadelphia: sources

Police and other law enforcement in Philadelphia continue to search for Shane Pryor, the 17-year-old inmate who escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Wednesday.

www.cbsnews.com

Inmate Shane Pryor wasn't handcuffed or restrained before he escaped in Philadelphia: sources​

By Joe Holden

January 25, 2024 / 6:38 PM EST / CBS Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Police and other law enforcement in Philadelphia continue to search for Shane Pryor, the 17-year-old inmate who escaped from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Wednesday.

But what exactly happened at CHOP in the moments leading to his escape?

RELATED: Shane Pryor, escaped Philadelphia prisoner, was charged with murder of Tanya Harris in 2020

Investigators say there were missteps and this wasn't supposed to happen. Police, the mayor's office and the Department of Human Services declined to talk on record about the escape.

But, law enforcement sources say Pryor was not handcuffed or restrained when he escaped the custody of people who drove him to CHOP on Wednesday.




Pryor was going to the hospital for treatment for a hand injury, according to police, that happened at the juvenile detention center on North 48th Street and Haverford Avenue in West Philadelphia.

The city's human services department operates the facility and has come under sharp scrutiny before.

A CBS News Philadelphia investigation showed the city said the center was so overcrowded that it filed a suit against the state of Pennsylvania to move some juveniles to other locations.

Philadelphia's Juvenile Law Center has been involved in shining a light on problems there.



"The facts are deeply concerning," Marsha Levick, a chief legal officer of the Philadelphia Juvenile Law Center, said in a statement. "Regardless of what this young man has been charged with, it is never acceptable for a person in the custody of the city or state to face the kind of harm this young man was exposed to. When a child is placed at JJSC (Juvenile Justice Services Center) the city has an obligation to keep him safe."

Meanwhile, there are new questions now about why Pryor and his co-defendant's cases have dragged on slowly for years without a resolution.

Court records show there have been 10 attempts to move his case out of the Court of Common Pleas and back to juvenile court. It's what's known as a "decertification hearing."

The hearings were scheduled and then canceled and rescheduled for months, starting in early 2022 up until last month.

Pryor was 14 when in 2020 he was charged with murder.