A New Orleans woman accused of helping an escaped inmate had her bond set Tuesday morning.
Darriana Burton, 28, is accused of helping her boyfriend Derrick Groves, a convicted murderer, in his escape from the Orleans Parish jail.
Burton’s bond was set at $2.5 million.
She is facing felony charges for conspiracy to commit simple escape.
According to an affidavit, Burton communicated with Groves over an iPad at the jail days before the escape.
The family of Derrick Groves maintains that the two were not dating. They also said Burton did not assist Groves in the escape.
Smartcom was introduced to the Orleans Parish Justice Center in February.
Court documents show Burton communicated with Groves through his iPad days before the May 16th escape, potentially helping orchestrate pickups and the escape’s timing.
Burton is also said to have potentially dropped off one of the escapees, Lenton Vanburen to New Orleans East following the escape.
Online documents released by the Orleans Parish sheriff tout the programs’ success, saying the tablets help give inmates free 15-minute phone calls a day and 20-minute video calls a week. This is all in an effort to reduce overall jail violence, improve quality of life and reduce tension among the inmates.
Burton worked at OPSO from August 2022 to March 2023. She was fired for allegedly bringing contraband into the jail.
Her charges were refused by the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office because Burton completed a diversion program.
The district attorney issued the following statement regarding the charges being dismissed:
“The charges against Ms. Burton were thoroughly reviewed by a senior screening attorney, who considered all available evidence at that time, the specific conduct alleged, and Ms. Burton’s lack of criminal history. Ms. Burton was ultimately offered, and successfully completed, a pretrial diversion program.
“The contraband in question was not actually introduced into the secure area of the facility. According to the incident report, Ms. Burton left the contraband inside a bag at the facility entrance and did not follow through with delivery. These facts, coupled with her cooperation and lack of prior criminal activity, were key considerations in the decision not to pursue formal prosecution.
“We were only referred this case involving Ms. Burton and are not aware of any other criminal conduct or disciplinary action taken by OPSO against her for similar behavior.
“As with all cases, our office’s priority is to evaluate whether we can meet our legal burden of proof at trial, along with other relevant factors.
“The present matters remain under active review by the appropriate agencies. Any and all persons found to be complicit in the escape or in aiding escapees will be fully prosecuted and held accountable for their actions.”
Despite the new developments, the U.S. Marshals Office says it is not giving up on its search.
“Our investigation continues, and they could be anywhere. They could be in New Orleans or they could be out of the New Orleans area,” said Brian Fair with the U.S. Marshals Office.
READ MORE:Bond set for escaped inmate Derrick Groves’ girlfriend
