# Tennessee killer serving life recaptured in Missouri after prison escape

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/convicted-murderer-who-escaped-from-tennessee-prison-captured-in-missouri/
- Published: 2026-11-03T19:42:35+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-03T20:08:36+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/nov/03/jacob-morley-tennessee-prisoner-capture
- Topics: World

## Key points

- Jacob Morley was captured outside Kansas City after more than a week on the run.
- Number-plate readers helped track his travel through Missouri.
- His escape renews attention on violence and oversight in Tennessee prisons.

## Summary

Jacob Morley, a 28-year-old serving life for murder, was recaptured in Missouri on Tuesday after escaping from a Tennessee prison more than a week earlier. Authorities said automated number-plate readers showed he was travelling through the state, but gave few details about how they located him.

Morley escaped on 25 October by slipping through a fence in prison clothes, then stole a farm truck, later abandoned in Illinois. He was convicted of killing co-worker Cody Birchfield in 2022, whose body was found in a box under Morley’s home. His escape adds to scrutiny of Tennessee’s prison system, where recent years have seen prisoner killings, other violent incidents and the resignation of the corrections commissioner.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.