Marlin Gusman, sheriff?

Thank goodness U.S. Marshalls are doing the job which, apparently, Gusman isn't doing:

Using jailhouse telephone records, U.S. Marshals Service deputies have determined that the inmate, Donald R. Tucker, made his usual daily round of calls Sunday about 2 p.m. but missed several opportunities to use the phone after that, according to the records and law enforcement sources involved in the case. The sources said they suspect that Tucker, convicted on carjacking and gun charges in March, may have escaped as early as Sunday afternoon.

Gusman: "Uh ... I have some leads ... uh ... this is a sensitive police investigation ... I'd be compromising the investigation if I told you anything else."

Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff Marlin Gusman said Tucker probably escaped Tuesday morning with help from somebody "inside the prison." Gusman's office declined further comment Wednesday on whether Tucker may have escaped earlier, except to say that the circumstances of the escape remain under investigation.

Gusman: "I caught 'em didn't I? So what are you worried about? It's just like giving 'em a weekend pass."

State records show that three other inmates have escaped from Orleans Parish Prison since the jail reopened after the chaotic evacuation of inmates and the temporary shutdown forced by Hurricane Katrina. All three have been captured and the Sheriff's Office said they were never considered a threat to public safety.