Georgia Inmate Escapes During Sheriff’s Car Wash, Gets Caught in Hours

A Georgia inmate apparently saw his chance for freedom during a car wash assignment and took it, but that freedom lasted less than a full workday. According to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Isaac Kindle left the DCSO car wash at approximately 9:30 a.m. before being taken back into custody later that same afternoon.

The Sheriff’s Office said Kindle was apprehended through a coordinated effort involving its own personnel along with the Cobb Sheriff’s Department, Cobb Police Department, Kennesaw Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals. By 5:45 p.m., Sheriff Tim Pounds was personally escorting him back through the front door.

The department made it clear that Kindle would not simply be returning to the same routine after his brief absence. Instead, the Sheriff’s Office said Pounds walked him “straight to Super Max” after bringing him back to Douglas County.

That also allowed the department to respond to critics who had apparently been questioning its handling of the situation. “While the ‘Reformers’ were talking, the DCSO was working,” the agency wrote, before adding, “This is NOT what ‘inept’ looks like.”

A Short-Lived Escape Ends Back at the Jail

The short video that was posted to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page couldn’t be embedded, but it features Kindle being transported back to the facility in a marked police vehicle. After parking in front of the building, both he and various other officers get out, and the former is escorted into custody.

DCSO did not provide additional details about exactly how Kindle managed to leave the car wash or where officers eventually located him. What it did emphasize was the number of agencies involved in finding him and the speed with which he was returned to custody.

Sheriff Pounds also had a characteristically direct assessment of the situation once Kindle was back. “We don’t put up with NO foolishness in Douglas County,” he said in the department’s post.

The timeline makes the escape particularly short-lived, with roughly eight hours separating Kindle leaving the car wash and being walked back inside by the sheriff. Whatever he had planned for the rest of the day, ending it in Super Max probably wasn’t part of it.

The Sheriff’s Office did not specify in the post whether Kindle will face additional charges related to leaving custody. For now, the one thing the department did confirm is that he is back behind bars.

Comments and Reactions to the Georgia Inmate’s Return

Commenters had no trouble finding humor in how quickly the situation turned around, with one responding, “Gotta be quicker than that!” Another joked that Kindle simply hadn’t been paid enough “attention” while working at the car wash.

Others focused on Sheriff Pounds himself, especially the way he spoke during Kindle’s return. One person said the sheriff sounded “like a Daddy talking to his kid,” while another questioned why Kindle appeared to be sitting in the front seat during transport.

There were also questions about how Kindle was located so quickly, with one commenter crediting Flock cameras for the arrest. Whatever technology or legwork ultimately led deputies to him, the ending was the same: a morning escape, an afternoon arrest, and a personal escort from the sheriff right back into custody.