White was accompanying Vicky White, the assistant director of corrections for the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office, who was transporting the suspect, to a court appearance in that matter earlier this year in April. Despite having the same last name, they are unrelated.
Authorities then claimed that there was a “special relationship” between the defendant and his guard.
At a press conference on April 19, Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton said of the deputy, “Knowing the convict, I think she’s in danger regardless of the circumstances,” as the two headed into the wind. He had nothing to lose because he was being held for capital murder.
The detainee was indirectly responsible for Deputy White’s death, according to the authorities, even though she was ultimately in danger.
Authorities surrounded the pair in the area of Evansville, Indiana, in May. According to the indictment, Vicky White then shot herself in the head to end her life. With her passing, Casey White added another felony murder charge to his record, which makes him criminally responsible for any death caused while committing a felony. According to the prosecution, Casey White’s first-degree felony escape led directly to the death of the guard.
Lauderdale County Circuit Court Judge Benjamin R. Graves provided a timeline for both trials, which will happen months apart, in a brief order issued on Wednesday.
The first-degree felony murder charge against Casey White will be tried in court on April 17, 2023.
On June 12, 2023, he will stand trial for Ridgeway’s death in a capital murder case. On that count, the prosecution said it would not pursue the death penalty.
Prosecutors and defense lawyers must submit suggestions for jury questionnaire questions by January 27, 2023, as juries will determine both cases.
According to the authorities, they were taken aback by the deputy’s alleged involvement in the inmate’s escape. According to Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton, Vicky White had worked for the sheriff’s office for around 25 years. Vicky White, according to the sheriff, informed her deputies that she was picking up Casey White for a mental health evaluation, leaving him off, and then going to get herself some medical care because she felt unwell.
Singleton claimed that going alone with prisoners was a “severe breach” of the rules and that no one raised an objection due to Deputy White’s experience.
The inmate and the deputy had 949 conversations between August 2021 and late February 2022 while Casey White was jailed at the William Donaldson Correctional Facility in Jefferson County, the sheriff revealed later this year.
The sheriff revealed in September that Casey White and Vicky White also “had some phone sex.” On February 16, 2023, the court will convene a status conference.
