Prisoners in southwest Missouri returning to a county jail damaged in a failed breakout will find a new color scheme - pink paint, with stenciled blue teddy bears as accents.
The Dallas County Detention Center in Buffalo, Mo., is being repainted a soft shade of pink in an effort to better manage sometimes volatile detainees. Sheriff Mike Rackley said he decided to update the look as part of extensive repairs necessary after inmates set a fire and vandalized the interior in an escape attempt.
"Basically, if they are going to act like children and commit a childish act, then we'll make a childish atmosphere," he said. "And it's a calming thing. Teddy bears are soothing. So we made it like a day care, and that's kind of like what it is: a day care for adults who can't control their behavior in public."
A month after the Oct. 8 incident, the county's 30-plus prisoners are in neighboring jails while repairs continue.
"How do you feel tough in a pink atmosphere?" Rackley said about the color scheme, which was inspired by similar redecorating efforts at jails in Texas and Arizona.