CLAREMORE, Okla. — Rogers County officials are voicing concerns about the security of a mental health facility after a court-ordered patient walked away.
Beaux Jones was not located for more than 14 hours.
Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton says Jones has a violent history and should not have been placed in a non-secure facility.
Walton and Rogers County District Attorney Matt Ballard held a news conference at the Rogers County Courthouse.
Ballard says Jones, who pushed a window out of Claremore’s Grand Lake Horizons and walked away, has a violent history of assaults on officers.
WATCH: Rogers Co. Sheriff, DA urge transparency from mental health facility
“From a DA, law enforcement standpoint, this is exactly the nightmare situation we worry about, the type of thing that keeps me up at night,” said Ballard.
Walton said he didn’t know anything about the facility, which opened in November 2024.
“I think there should be some mandates when we are putting dangerous people in our community to at least give us [sheriff’s department] a heads up,” he said.
While Walton has concerns about the security of the building and who they are taking in, he seemed frustrated that ODMHSAS (Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services) seemed more concerned about the privacy of the patient.
Walton aired a voicemail from ODMHSAS general counsel stating the sheriff’s office post about Jones violated HIPAA, the federal law to protect patient privacy.
“If it was a violation I would certainly violate it to protect the people of Rogers County, it’s absurd,” he said.
“We are not concerned about any violation, we are concerned about public safety, that is going to be our number one priority,” said Ballard.
Walton says there are HIPAA exemptions for people who are at risk to the public.
Deputies took Jones to a facility in Pryor, also owned by Grand Mental Health, that Walton says has higher security.
2 News reached out to ODMHSAS and Grand Mental Health. We did not hear back from ODMHSAS.
Grand Mental Health gave us this statement:
“GRAND Horizons provides reintegration support for Oklahomans transitioning from structured environments back into the community. All residents have been clinically and legally deemed appropriate for this lower level of care by state clinicians and courts. While Horizons is not a secured facility and residents are not in custody, they are required to comply with all mandated conditions and facility guidelines as part of their reintegration process. As with all GRAND services and facilities, Horizon’s focus is on providing exemplary care to those we serve.
We remain steadfast in our commitment to the people of Rogers County, as we have been for decades. We look forward to continued collaboration with the Sheriff’s Office to address community concerns and to advance our shared goals of supporting community well-being, promoting public safety, and fostering open communication.”
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