ST. LOUIS — The three teens who ran away from the Division of Youth Services in St. Louis County early Monday morning were acting "suspiciously" the night before, according to a source through 5 On Your Side's I-Team.
The source revealed that two 16-year-old boys and a 17-year-old boy were at the facility for various crimes, including resisting arrest, misdemeanor assault, and unlawful use of a weapon.
Police told 5 On Your Side the boys ran away from the youth facility located on Bellfontaine Road in north St. Louis County at 5 a.m. Monday.
As of 9 a.m. Monday, the boys had not been found.
According to the source, the teens were caught using a phone without permission the night before they escaped. That morning, staff members heard a loud noise. When they went to investigate, they noticed a door in the common space area had been kicked in and a window was broken.
Staff also reported a late-model Hyundai picked the teens up, the source stated.
Officers later chased that car, but eventually called off the pursuit.
According to the Missouri Department of Social Services, the state's Division of Youth Services helps young people in custody become productive citizens by providing individualized, comprehensive, strengths and needs-based services that enable them to reintegrate into their home and community.
Kenya Brumfield-Young, a criminology professor at St. Louis University stated that while the circumstances surrounding how the teens were able to get out are unclear, there are a number of things that are evident.
"We have to evaluate and make sure that the treatment and program realities are in line with the young people that we're getting in and meeting things like the level of trauma that they are seeing, their experiences and that they are continuously evolving. We absolutely need to make sure we have additional funding for therapeutic staff. Therapeutic staff for day-to-day interventions," Brumfield-Young said.
A spokesperson for the Department of Social Services who runs the facility provided the following statement:
"Due to the confidentiality of youth in the care of Division of Youth Services (DYS) the Department of Social Services cannot provide specific information. DYS records are confidential by law (see RSMo. 219.061.3), and the Division has a comprehensive regulation (13 CSR 110-2.140) governing the confidentiality of its records.
"The safety of youth in the care of the Division of Youth Services and communities are paramount and the Department of Social Services works closely with law enforcement to safely locate runaway youth. The Division of Youth Services also reviews events with facility staff to improve and strengthen the program and to support identified needs to increase the safety of all."
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