A 38-year-old man being driven to a state prison for processing is accused of trying to escape from state parole officers three times before dawn, kicking his way out of two separate transport vehicles along the way. Michael Bozier Jr. left a state parole facility in Swatara Township, Dauphin County, just before 2:15 a.m. on August 30, according to court documents, setting off an incident that left two vans damaged and Bozier facing a fresh set of felony charges.
According to the York Daily Record, state parole agents told Pennsylvania State Police that Bozier managed to move his handcuffs from behind his back to underneath his feet while he was in custody. Investigators say he was found handcuffed, but the repositioning allegedly gave him enough freedom of movement to attempt his escape. Bozier was being transferred to SCI Camp Hill, the state correctional facility in Cumberland County, when the incident unfolded.
Two Vehicles, Two Broken Windows
Police say Bozier kicked out a window of the first parole vehicle before he was moved into a second one. Once inside that second vehicle, court records show he kicked out its window as well, and the vehicle's window cage sustained additional damage in the process. The York Daily Record's report notes the incident marked the third time Bozier allegedly tried to escape from state parole officers that morning, per the charging allegations.
Public reporting on the incident indicated that damage to the two vehicles, including the broken windows and the damaged window cage, totaled nearly $1,000 in repair costs, according to The Daily News Now. Bozier was ultimately taken to the Dauphin County booking center, where he now faces two felony escape charges, two misdemeanor institutional vandalism charges, and one misdemeanor criminal mischief charge, per the York Daily Record's reporting.
Why the Charges Carry Felony Weight
Under Pennsylvania law, unlawfully removing oneself from official detention while held under a felony charge or conviction is graded as a felony of the third degree, according to Justia Law. A conviction on that grade of felony carries a maximum statutory sentence of up to seven years in prison. Separately, Pennsylvania's criminal mischief statute penalizes intentional or reckless property damage, with charge grading and restitution amounts tied directly to the calculated cost of the loss, per myStateCollegeLawyer.
Bozier's transfer toward SCI Camp Hill was not incidental to the case. The facility serves as the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections' primary diagnostic and classification center, responsible for receiving and processing all adult male inmates entering or re-entering the state prison system, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Bozier's placement under state parole supervision traces back to a prior felony conviction: the Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed his Dauphin County conviction for possession with intent to deliver cocaine and criminal use of a communication facility in January 2023, and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania denied his petition for allowance of appeal that June, finalizing the case.
A Local Hub for Corrections Activity
Swatara Township, where the escape attempts began, hosts key regional public-safety and correctional infrastructure, including the Dauphin County Prison and the Dauphin County Work Release Center. The township's role as a hub for prisoner transport activity in Dauphin County underscores how often transfers like Bozier's move through the area. Bozier also had a prior law enforcement contact in the county: Highspire Borough Police Department arrested him in May 2020 on a disorderly conduct charge stemming from an alleged physical assault involving kicking.
Bozier has a preliminary hearing scheduled for September 21 in Dauphin County. Open questions in the case include what specific parole violation triggered his re-detention on August 30 and whether prosecutors will pursue consecutive sentencing given the multiple alleged escape attempts and the damage spread across two separate vehicles.
