Tragic reminder of hazards faced by jail workers

Amanda Baker could brighten up a room just by walking in, her friends and family say.

She worked hard at her job, and was taking classes to get her credentials to become a nurse at the Torrington Correctional Facility to try to better provide for herself and her son, 6.

Amanda probably had a hard time juggling work and motherhood, so working an overnight shift at the Scotts Bluff County Detention Center was just one more way to adapt.

Early Friday morning, a 15-year-old inmate got her attention. There was something strange on the floor of his cell, he said; could she take a look at it?

She probably knew better, but he was only a teenager; at 24, Amanda wasn't that far out of her teens herself.

When her back was turned, security cameras show, the boy pounced on top of her, wrapping his arms around her head and neck until she apparently lost consciousness.

But he held on, according to the arrest affidavit, for another minute and a half until she went limp.

The boy took the keys off her belt, left his cell, opened and entered several other cells that held juvenile offenders, but another jailer found out what was going on, locked them back up and radioed for medical help.

One of Amanda's fellow officers applied smelling salts, and another administered CPR until the ambulance arrived.

Later that afternoon, convinced Amanda's brain was dead, her family allowed her organs to be removed for transplant.

"Amanda Baker was a light in our world that was blown out much too early," her family said in a statement.

"With a great sense of humor and a smile that took over her whole face, any room would brighten when she entered.

"Amanda had a great inner strength and she will be greatly missed by her family, friends and co-workers. In the words of her son 'She was the greatest mother ever.'"

The family has set up a fund for anyone wishing to make donations.

The Amanda Baker Memorial Fund

c/o Platte Valley Bank

1212 Circle Drive

Scottsbluff NE 69361

Amanda's story strikes a chord in McCook, home to the Work Ethic Camp and the new Red Willow County Jail. It's a sad reminder of the hazards faced by correctional officers and law enforcement in general, and should prompt us to do everything we can to support them and help them do their jobs safely.