Fugitive captured after Blount jail released him by mistake

12:08 AM, Sep 5, 2012   |    comments
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A fugitive who's been on the run for more than a month was arrested Tuesday evening in Knoxville.

The U.S. Marshals Service announced they took 55-year-old Dewyatt Allen Hill into custody around 7:30 p.m. at a trailer park on Clinton Highway.

He was facing a 71-year sentence for pharmacy robberies, and authorities considered him armed and dangerous.

Jailers in Blount County mistakenly allowed the federal inmate to walk free on July 18.

In a report over the weekend, the sheriff's office blamed both human and policy errors, but noted no one at the jail would be disciplined.

According to the sheriff's office, a "hold" on Hill was never filed or logged into the computer. That partially led to the release.

Jail personnel must now follow three new policies, including filing "hold" information immediately, and a supervisor must authorize each release.

Hill was arrested by Deputy U.S. Marshals and local officers without incident.