For Rex Heuermann, An Extraordinary Arrest, But Ordinary Incarceration

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — The events leading to the arrest of accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann are anything but ordinary.

His incarceration, so far, is the opposite.

It’s business as usual with standard operating procedures at the Suffolk County Jail, Sheriff Errol Toulon says.

“Everything is going according to plan — normal business hours, normal business operations, so, nothing really unusual. And for me, you know, I spent the majority of my career on Rikers Island, so having a high-profile person in custody is really not new to me,” he said.

Toulon has guarded notorious inmates including mob boss John Gotti, Preppy killer Robert Chambers, subway vigilante shooter Bernie Goetz, and Joel Steinberg, a former criminal defense attorney who killed an illegally adopted child.

That’s just to name a few.

He also kept watch over the four men — Philip Copeland, Todd Scott, Scott Cobb, and David McClary — who were convicted of gunning down New York Police Department Police Officer Eddie Byrne, as he sat in his patrol car guarding a witness’ house.

In another high-profile case that has gained international attention, Heuermann has been charged in the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Lynn Costello, and Megan Waterman. He is also the prime suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes. All four women were sex workers whose bodies were found along Ocean Parkway in Gilgo Beach.

The sheriff’s office has declined to release the location of Heuermann’s incarceration, only saying that he is in the Suffolk Correctional Facility system, which includes the maximum security jail in Riverside and the minimum security jail in Yaphank.

Inside Heuermann's Day In Jail

Heuermann’s day starts like any other inmate. He wakes up with breakfast served, and after that, his day is up to him. He can go back to sleep or take a shower.

“He has all the services that's available to everyone else in our custody, so it's really nothing unusual except that really the charges that he's accused of,” Toulon said.

Heuermann can keep reading material in his cell, but he doesn’t appear to have any, the sheriff said.

“The last time I visited him, I did not see any in his cell,” said Toulon. “So it's up to him whether he wants a newspaper or even if he wants a book to read.”

He can receive care packages, but hasn’t. No one from his friends or family has visited him.

So far, three news organizations have asked for a sit-down with Heuermann.

He can make purchases from the commissary, but Toulon couldn't immediately confirm any.

There’s no small talk with his jailers either.

“The small talk is really a ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ or anything regarding any services he maybe wants to go to,” Toulon said.

“It's not him engaging in any type of conversation, like the Yankees lost and the Mets won,” he says, adding the quip, “which never really happens, really it’s usually the Mets losing and the Yankees winning.”

No Trouble, So Far

Heuermann has told his jailers that he will comply with his incarceration, something Toulon says only time will tell.

Toulon, in corrections for 41 years, says that “during the course of someone's incarceration, you do see changes in behavior.”

“While he's informed my staff that he's going to follow all the rules and be compliant, you know, things can change once you start to realize the severity of the case that you're incarcerated for, and the length of time you may be incarcerated,” he said. “That reality can fit in very quickly.”

“While he said that on day one, we'll see how the next few weeks, months go until his case comes to trial,” he said.

A Visit From The Sheriff

Toulon has seen Heuermann four times while doing his rounds of the jail, which he says is not unusual.

“No, because I walked through my jails and talk to all the inmates,” he said. “This isn't just for Rex Heuermann.”

Toulon does a walk-through of both facilities in Riverside and Yaphank. It’s a carryover from when he was the deputy commissioner at Rikers Island, in which he took a daily tour of every jail.

“My father, who was a deputy warden, taught me that at a very young age about engaging with the staff and engaging with the incarcerated population because sometimes they want to talk to you,” he said. “They may have issues that they don't want to discuss with the correctional officer, and with that, you can address certain issues that they may want to talk to you about.”

“I like to see what's going on in my jail,” he said. “I do not like to sit behind my desk. I like to know what's going on.”

Toulon engaged with Heuermann when he first arrived.

“The only thing I did is I said, “My name is Sheriff Toulon; I’m the sheriff of Suffolk County, and I know you may be with us for a while and I know my staff has been engaging with you,’” he recalled.

Heuermann answered, “‘Yes, sir.’”

“But he couldn't even talk about any of the staff that he spoke with because there's been so many tour changes that he has been engaged with,” Toulon said. “So that was really the extent and only conversation I've had with him in the times that I've visited him because there's really no need for me to speak to him about anything.”

With Safety Precautions, 'Everything Will Go Just As Fine'

Despite the charges against Heuermann and his alleged prowess with guns, Toulon is a little more concerned about staff safety than he would be with any other inmate.

He’s concerned “anytime anyone is confined in our jails,” but not necessarily so about firearms “because you won't have access to any of those.”

“Really anyone, especially as the heinousness of the crimes that he's accused of committing — of a violent nature, I'm definitely concerned about my staff at any time,” he said. “But we've taken security precautions, and I think that everything will go just as fine.”

“As I said to many people, justice will be served in the courts and not the jails,” he said.
The hulking Heuermann, who stands 6 feet, 4 inches, is kept in a separate housing area from others, “not necessarily itself because all the cells are single occupancy cells, for his safety and for the safety of other inmates and also my staff.”

It’s part of a standard operating procedure at the jail.

So far, Heuermann is eating and like everyone else, Toulon says.

“There’s nothing abnormal about his behavior than anyone else in our custody,” he added.
Heuermann can view a shared TV from his cell.

In the four times Toulon has spoken with him, he was sitting up once and the other three times he was actually laying down — twice on his side, once on his back.

“I'm not there 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” Toulon said. “And so when he is awake, I'm sure that he may be watching TV certain times.”

Heuermann is allowed recreational time, and will be escorted to the area where he can walk, or lift weights, or play basketball.

“He can participate in all the activities you just mentioned, but he will do it by himself,” Toulon said.

Heuermann does not have specific staff dedicated to him per se, according to Toulon.

However, when he is moved in the facility, the jail is locked down and he is accompanied by two correctional officers and a supervisor from his housing unit.

Other inmates who might fight or act out violently would have a higher security escort, according to Toulon.

Rather than the standard red and white prison uniform designated for violent offenders,

Heuermann has been deemed less of a risk and has been assigned a green uniform.

Toulon says that the designation is determined by several factors, including past arrest history, of which Heuermann has none.

Heuermann Needs 'A Little Bit More' Close Watching

Toulon says that the department is not under stress from Heuermann’s incarceration as it is not the first time the system has experienced a high-profile prisoner.

It’s a “horrific crime” and the length of time it took to bring him into custody is considerable, “which is really bringing more notoriety for the outside world,” Toulon said.

“But those that work inside the jails, this is just another individual who's in our custody, and we may just have to watch him a little bit more closely to make sure that nothing happens to him,” he said.

“And, when I say that, it's because we don't know who he has been interacting with in the community when he was out, so whether it was a John, whether it was a pimp, whether it was a sex worker, whether it was someone that came in contact or if it's one of the inmates, that just wants to bring up his street credibility by saying they did something to Rex Heuermann because they're very sympathetic to the families or to women in general,” he added.

“We can't let that happen, so the staff is very cognizant — the warden, deputy wardens, lieutenants, captains, and correctional officers are all very aware of what we have to do.”

Heuermann, who remains on suicide watch, will continue to have his mental health evaluated by the county’s health department staff, according to Toulon.

He was scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, making it likely he will be re-evaluated.

“I'm sure they're going to evaluate it to see if there's a change of behavior in the next couple of days,” he said. “They'll continue to do what they have to do and make their recommendations to us.”

Toulon says it’s very important in the correctional business to view situations from a different set of eyes, not only from an administrative view but a corrections view.

“I know how I want this jail, and particularly inmates like this to know how the management of them should occur,” he said. “I've made it a point to make sure all of my executive staff at some point or another goes into tours to make sure that everything that we've put in place is actually being carried out.”

He’s put that in place so that “there are no issues and listen, anything can happen inside of a jail.”

“We're not perfect, but I can tell you that we've played everything that we can think of from our professional experience, to ensure not only the safety of our staff, but also the safety ofthe individual,” he said.

Toulon who credits himself for being very-involved in the jail system, said he needs to continue, “because of this individual and because of my previous experience” with high-profile cases.

“I don't want to find out later on that something was going awry and no one brought it to my attention. So let's make our frequent tours, making sure that everybody's doing what they're supposed to be doing until this case is adjudicated,” he said. “It’s very important to me.”

All In A Day's Work

Tours are conducted not only by the correctional officer, but supervisory staff to make sure everyone is doing what they are supposed to be doing.

“The lieutenants making sure what the sergeants are doing, the captains are making sure what the lieutenants are doing, going all the way down all the way up to the warden,” Toulon said.

“It's really just walking through the housing area making sure the logbook entries are in compliance with what we've issued,” he added.

They also make sure “nothing is going on” in the housing area.

“I made sure that the staff walks through all the housing areas, everywhere we go,” he said. “I know Rex Heuermann is getting a lot of attention now, but that's throughout all of the facilities, both facilities, to ensure that supervisors know exactly what's going on in the areas they're responsible for.”

At a news conference after Heuermann's court appearance on Tuesday afternoon, his attorney, Michael Brown of Central Islip, said the suicide watch is normal for those who are incarcerated.

Heuermann is not interested in a plea deal and is looking forward to this day in court, according to Brown.

Brown feels the press already "convicted" his client in the public eye, and claimed the media is fully accepting law enforcement's presented evidence in the bail application, he said.

"I've been doing this for 30 years. The government makes allegations all the time," he said. "Sometimes the allegations are true. Sometimes they're not."

Maureen Mullarkey contributed additional reporting to this story.