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| Escape attempt at juvenile center quashed by staff, Metro police |
| By The Tennessean |
| Published: 03/08/2004 |
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A malfunctioning gate and rumors about its vulnerability might have spurred an ''opportunistic'' escape attempt last week at a local juvenile detention center. The fracas pitted juveniles armed with improvised weapons such as broken mop handles, trash-can lids and bricks against detention center staff and Metro police. Two nurses and 18 other staff members, including officers, teachers and counselors, suffered minor injuries. The most seriously hurt was a nurse who possibly had her nose broken, said Carla Aaron, spokeswoman of the state Department of Children's Services. DCS runs the Woodland Hills Youth Development Center at 3965 Stewarts Lane, where the escape attempt occurred. None of the juveniles was injured, said Ken Currie, the center's superintendent. A window was broken on a staff member's car and two windows were broken at the building housing the center's females. Metro police officers set up a perimeter around the facility, which sits in a largely unpopulated area off County Hospital Road in the Bordeaux area of Nashville. Two teams of officers with riot gear went in to quell the disturbance as a police helicopter circled overhead. ''I don't believe there was much of a danger of escape,'' said Metro police Lt. Danny Driskell, who led one of the teams of Metro police officers in the center. It began about 12:30 p.m., when 15 boys who were being led by four staff members from lunch to another building made a mad dash toward the outer gates, officials said. A courtyard separates the buildings from the main gate. Other security personnel were nearby at the time and officers were waiting for them at their destination. The facility, which is termed ''hardware secure,'' has razor wire and controlled access of all the buildings. Eight of 15 boys involved in the escape attempt have been sent to other facilities. Placement for the remaining seven will be determined in the near future, she said. |
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