Cass County Jail

Cass County Jail No. 5

By 1960 Cass County had already had four jails throughout its history. Their fourth one was 90 years old at the time. Calls for a fifth Cass County Jail were made stating that not only had prisoners escaped from the current jail but every grand jury had indicted it as being inadequate, unsanitary and unsightly.

On November 6, 1934, a special election was held with the goal of raising $54,544 through a special tax to build a new jail but it was defeated 3,188 to 2,279. So they were stuck with the jail they currently had.

But finally in 1961, a new jail, worth $100,000 would be constructed in Harrisonville. The sheriff’s office would be located in the east side of the building, being relocated from the first floor of the courthouse.

Over the years the jail has had its handful of crazy stories and I want to share some of them below.

The Garden City Views – March 17, 1965 – Cass County Prosecuting Attorney Carl Gum, on March 5, filed charges of escape against Kenneth Maupin, a trustee at the Cass County Jail for the past several months. Maupin was apprehended on March 6 by State Highway Patrolman Benny Southwick while the escapee was driving a car without a license plate in the vicinity of Harrisonville. Maupin, who was serving a jail term as a result of a conviction on an insufficient fund check charge walked away from the jail on March 3 while serving as a jail trustee.

The Star-Herald January 20, 1966 – An alleged plot by several inmates of the Cass County Jail to kill both Prosecuting Attorney Carl D. Gum and Sheriff William James was revealed late last week when one of the prisoners, supposedly to have been involved, turned informer.

The story came to light last Friday afternoon when Melvin Byrd, awaiting trial on a charge of stealing under $50, related the tale to Sheriff James. A search was made of the “bull pen” cell with the result of three knives and a pair of scissors being found in the area.

Charges of carrying concealed weapons have been filed against two prisoners, Clarence H. Jenkins awaiting trial on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and Herman L. Jackson awaiting trial on a charge of carrying a concealed weapon.

According to Byrd, Prosecutor Gum was to be stabbed in the courtroom by Jenkins, if the prisoner was sentenced to more than five years in prison. Sheriff James was to have been attacked at the jail after the prosecutor had been “done in”. According to the prosecuting attorney, the three inmates have admitted to the plot.

The Star-Herald February 14, 1991 – The three men who escaped from the Cass County Jail on Sunday, including suspected murderer James J. Gee, filled trash bags and placed them in their beds and under the covers in an attempt to hide their escape, Sheriff Homer Foote said Monday. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve never seen such a methodical, well-planned escape. They put a lot of thought into this.”

Gee is charged with killing Joe Sestak an Overland Park man on Nov. 1. Another man, Kurt D. Lowther, is also charged in the slaying. He remains in the Cass County Jail. The other two escapees, Timothy L. Lestourgeon and Robert Snow were being held on drug charges and burglary, respectively.

The three men who were still being sought Wednesday morning also had access to a wrench and a hacksaw blade. The blade was found on the roof. They made their escape between midnight Saturday and 11 am Sunday by removing a screen over an air vent. Then climbing about 15 feet through the vent, they kicked open and exhaust fan on the roof of the building.

Foote said the group had to saw through a pipe while in the vent. He said that the group might have learned that the pupe was there from an inmate still in the cellblock who attempted a similar escape more than a month ago.

While the scenario is the most plausible, Foote said, an explanations to how Gee who is 6’4 and weighs 240 lbs passed through the vent space remains unexplained. “I’ll be darned if I can figure out how he did it. He’s a big man and that vent can’t be 24 by 24 inches.”

What is also unexplained is how the prisoners got access to a wrench and hacksaw and why other prisoners in the cell block area didn’t hear or see the escape. “I can’t make a decision right now,” Foote said when asked whether he believed the three had help in escaping. “But in my own mind, I think they did.” And the three other prisoners “were asleep” Foote said. Foote said he believed a wrench was used because one of the bolts was found and according to him, “wasn’t ripped or stripped like it would be if they used some other tool.”

Investigators believed that the three had split up and at least Gee remained in the KC metro area. Sheriff’s office was notified last month of a possible jail escape being planned by Gee and an investigation revealed that a portion of the cinder block wall was being chipped away. Rumors that Gee had a hacksaw blade in his cell were also checked out, but nothing was found.

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The downfall of the jail officially came in 2003 when the brand-new Cass County Justice Center was finished. The inmates and supplies were moved out of this building and into the new one on the outskirts of town. It became used as just a storage facility for records up until a few years ago.

New Potential

The old Cass County Jail was listed for $195,000 in February of 2023. The odd property was purchased after about 3 weeks with the new buyers inviting the public on a tour of the facility to pitch their ideas of what it should be revitalized into. While official plans haven’t been detailed to the public yet, they are being described as “Nationally Recognized Jail-Themed Entertainment, Retail, and Lodging Business.”

Gallery Below of Cass County Jail

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