Results of state’s investigation into Jayme Biendl’s death expected Friday

Published 8:01 pm Tuesday, July 19, 2011

MONROE — State prison leaders are expected on Friday to release findings from an internal investigation into what happened the night corrections officer Jayme Biendl was killed at the Washington State Reformatory in Monroe.

It could shed light on why it took more than an hour to find Biendl,

34, after inmate Byron Scherf was apprehended in the chapel lobby. Corrections workers have privately said that tensions have built at the prison since Biendl’s death.

Scherf, 52, initially masked any knowledge of Biendl’s whereabouts and told corrections officers he’d planned to escape. He later confessed to the Jan. 29 killing, according to court documents. The convicted serial rapist is charged now with aggravated first-degree murder and could face the death penalty.

The internal investigation was carried out by three top administrators from other prisons across the state. None has worked at the Monroe Correctional Complex.

Typically, internal reviews provide a critical look at what might need to be fixed, corrections officials said.

Biendl, who worked alone, was found on the stage of the small chapel after her coworkers realized that she hadn’t turned in her keys or radio, something that was required at the end of her shift. An amplifier cord was wrapped around her neck.

The internal review followed a federal examination of operations at the Monroe prison.

In March, a federal panel of prison experts recommended more than a dozen changes at the Monroe Correctional Complex. The proposals included arming some officers with pepper spray, equipping officers with special body alarms and increasing surveillance camera coverage in the prison.

Changes also were suggested in how the prison system deploys and accounts for prison staff and volunteers.

The federal experts encouraged prison officials to review the records of all offenders serving life in prison without possibility of release. Scherf’s records show that prison officials a decade ago determined that he would pose a particular risk to women working at the prison, and should always be considered dangerous.

The report didn’t recommend hiring more officers.

Prison officials said they must move carefully as they overhaul the technology, policies and procedures used to keep officers safe at the state’s largest prison.

A third investigation also is under way. The state Department of Labor and Industries will determine whether state workplace safety laws were violated. If labor officials find something wrong, they can issue citations and fines.

That report is expected out next week, department spokesman Hector Castro said Tuesday. The report has to be done by the end of the month.

Reporter Rikki King contributed to this story.

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.