Mecklenburg County inmate van involved in I-77 wreck

Several Mecklenburg County jail inmates were hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries when a sheriff’s inmate transport van was involved in a minor two-vehicle wreck Tuesday morning on Interstate 77.

The wreck closed two of the four lanes on I-77 southbound near LaSalle Street, Exit 12, in Charlotte, and backed up traffic past Sunset Road. The wreck happened about 8:30 a.m.

The inmates were scheduled to be released from the hospital later Tuesday morning, said Rob Brisley, spokesman for the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. They were scheduled to be returned to the jail in a sheriff’s van.

No sheriff’s personnel in the van were injured, Brisley said. He said security reasons prevented him from releasing how many inmates were injured or to which hospital they were taken.

Both vehicles were able to drive away from the wreck scene, Brisley said.

This story was originally published May 5, 2015 at 9:18 AM with the headline "Mecklenburg County inmate van involved in I-77 wreck."