The “Shawskank” prison tailor who was busted for helping two convicted killers escape from a correctional facility upstate was denied parole Monday, reports said.
Good behavior apparently wasn’t enough to help Joyce “Tillie” Mitchell, 52, land an early release from prison. She had been sentenced to up to seven years behind bars in 2015.
The bespectacled seamstress was reportedly blasted by the parole board at her hearing last week at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility in Bedford Hills, NY.
“Your release would be incompatible with the welfare of society,” the board told her, according to NBC 5.
In their report, state officials noted Mitchell’s “institutional adjustment” but said her “good conduct” and “efficient performance of duties while confined” would ultimately not be enough to grant her freedom.
“If released at this time…there is a reasonable probability that you would not live and remain at liberty without again violating the law,” the board said.
“Your statements included lies and half-truths given in a piecemeal fashion. This apparently willful failure to volunteer comprehensive and truthful disclosure of information began during the investigation and continued during your interview with the board.”
Mitchell pleaded guilty in July 2015 to helping convicted murderers Richard Matt and David Sweat escape from Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora that June.
She admitted to giving the pair hacksaw blades and other tools — while also agreeing to be their getaway driver before later backing out. Mitchell was sleeping with Matt at the time and coordinating risque rendezvous in the prison tailor shop where she worked as a supervisor.
The Dannemora breakout sparked a massive manhunt, with authorities on the prowl for more than three weeks before they were able to shoot and kill Matt and recapture Sweat.
“It is fair to say that your crimes cost New York millions in response to the escape of inmates Matt and Sweat that your actions facilitated,” the board said in their decision to keep Mitchell behind bars.
“You allowed your common sense and supervisory duties to be compromised by developing unprofessional relationships with Matt and Sweat,” they added. “You present yourself more as a victim than a responsible participant and appear to be emotionally unstable and easily manipulated.”
One of the biggest reasons, the board said, for not granting Mitchell’s early release was the fact that she consistently lied to cops during their search — and then continued to do so during her parole interview.
“This apparently willful failure to volunteer comprehensive and truthful disclosure of information began during the investigation and continued during your interview with the board,” their decision read.
While the board received several letters from Mitchell’s husband, urging them to parole her early, they also got one from Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie — insisting that she should stay in prison.
“I believe the board’s decision accurately reflects the county’s ongoing concerns regarding the impact her actions have had on the safety and wellbeing of our community,” Wylie told NBC. “Her direct conduct put immense pressure on every citizen of this community as well as our local, state and federal resources…Joyce Mitchell must be held accountable and be required to serve the maximum sentence imposed upon her.”
The decision to not grant Mitchell parole was reportedly unanimous. Mitchell could now be released as early as Oct. 8, 2017 if she chooses to reapply for early release.