The Lawrence County Jail (New Castle News file photo)

By Annabelle Chipps, New Castle News

A new full-time captain has been hired at the Lawrence County jail.

The Lawrence County Prison Board at a special meeting Thursday hired Randy Clark, a former corrections officer, for the position. His hiring was previously recommended to the board by Warden Michael J. Mahlmeister, who did not attend. His salary in his new position will be $62,400 for this year, prorated.

Clark fills the position vacated when former captain Dillon Matthew Show, 33, was fired by a unanimous vote of the full seven-member board at a public meeting April 7. The board’s action was at Mahlmeister’s recommendation.

Show had worked at the jail for nine years. His most recent pay was $64,272 when he was terminated.

His firing resulted from an incident that involved the reported assault of an inmate. Show initially had been charged with simple assault by the district attorney’s office for reportedly shoving an inmate into a wall in January while trying to subdue him, according to a criminal complaint. That charge against him was dismissed in Central Court in February following a preliminary hearing.

A subsequent internal investigation by jail officials resulted in the warden recommending to the prison board that Show be terminated, prison board Chairman Chris Sainato explained.

“There were numerous policy violations in regards to the use of force that I believe were excessive, and reports weren’t complete on this incident,” Mahlmeister had said at the board’s April 7 meeting.

Clark, who has worked five years as a corrections officer, was one of six candidates for the captain’s position. All of the applicants are jail employees.

“We went along with the recommendation of the warden,” Sainato said of the board’s decision to hire Clark.

Members of the prison board are the three commissioners — Sainato and Dan Kennedy and Dan Vogler — Sheriff Perry Quahliero, District Attorney Joshua Lamancusa, Common Pleas President Judge J. Craig Cox and Controller David Prestopine.

Lamancusa and Prestopine were absent from Thursday’s special board meeting.

Annabelle Chipps is a recent graduate of Slippery Rock University and one of 10 Pittsburgh Media Partnership summer interns.

News reporter Debbie Wachter contributed to this report.