US: Freezing climate forces jail escapist to surrender

Just how cold is it in the US? Apparently cold enough for an escaped prisoner to turn himself in.

Authorities say the inmate escaped from a minimum security facility in Kentucky on Sunday. As temperatures dropped far below freezing on Monday, they say he walked into a motel and asked the clerk to call police.

Lexington police spokeswoman Sherelle Roberts says 42-year-old Robert Vick told the clerk he wanted to turn himself in and escape the arctic air.

Roberts says Vick was checked out by paramedics and returned to Blackburn Correctional Complex.

Department of Corrections spokeswoman Lisa Lamb says Vick would have been dressed in prison-issued pants, a shirt and a jacket when he escaped.