That is one of the concerns the state Department of Correction has in the case as it continues to investigate the Clanton release matter, spokesman Keith Acree said Thursday.

“We're trying to get it wrapped up in the next few days,” Acree said of the investigation. “We're trying to determine what happened and who did what.”

Acree said there is no state policy dictating what time an inmate must be released from prison, a response to Smith's contention had Clanton not been released from Odom until 8 a.m. or after he would have not left the prison and went on to allegedly rape a woman the following day in Roanoke Rapids and allegedly break into a house in Weldon. “It doesn't matter what time of day it happens.”

Acree said it is not uncommon for prison employees not to have their cell phones on during the work day, an issue Smith raised during a Wednesday press conference where he said the correctional officer transporting Clanton could not be reached by phone or radio. Radio communication, Acree said, is sometimes iffy.

The department's big concern is Smith didn't tell anyone in the prison's chain of command he had made a mistake, missing a pending charge the inmate had against him while reviewing his case, until Monday. “We found out about it Monday. He didn't tell anyone in the chain of command.”

Had prison officials or the department known about it Thursday, Acree said the department could have sent people looking for him, either by assembling the department's Prison Emergency Response Team, deploying bloodhounds and sending out press releases and media alerts.

Contacted Friday, Smith, a case manager who was suspended this week and then resigned, said there were people on the custody side of the prison and through the chain of command who knew Clanton had been mistakenly released. “The important issue is they put that inmate in the car and drove him to Weldon. They never released him into the computer. That's a big no-no. That inmate never showed release until 9:30 a.m. (maybe longer, Smith said). He was still an active inmate.”

As the department continues its investigation, Smith said he wants it to be fair, one which shows why Clanton was improperly released.

Meanwhile this week, Halifax County Sheriff Jeff Frazier said there were no errors on the county side in this matter.

Because there were pending charges in Clanton's case which were not tried in court, a magistrate put a $25,000 bond on him which showed up in Administrative Office of Courts records when Clanton's release was flagged in the state Department of Correction's computer system although he had already been released.

A detainer, Frazier said, was not needed. “A detainer is something issued by a judge. It's usually done for people who have charges in other jurisdictions or states.”