Deputies searching for inmate who escaped work crew in Spokane Valley

Spokane County Sheriff’s deputies are searching for an inmate who walked away from a work crew Tuesday near East Eighth Avenue and South McDonald Road in Spokane Valley.

Jonnathan M. Stayton, 22, is an inmate at Geiger Jail for violating a no-contact order, according to a sheriff’s office news release.

He walked away from the work crew at about 10 a.m., and responding sheriff’s deputies could not find him.

In response, Central Valley High School went into a lockout, which is a less-serious version of a lockdown.

“We’re really just doing this out of an abundance of caution,” said Marla Nunberg, Central Valley High School spokesperson.

Nunberg said an alert was sent to students’ parents.

Stayton is about 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds, according to the news release. He has brown hair and brown eyes. He was wearing an orange work vest, a blue jacket, a maroon T-shirt, blue pants and black boots when he escaped, the news release stated.

He was sentenced to 41 days in jail for fourth-degree assault on Jan. 23. Stayton also spent six days in jail in August after pleading guilty to third-degree theft.

Deputies are asking anyone who sees Stayton to call Crime Check at (509) 456-2233 and use reference No. 10029478.