D.C. police were searching Friday for four juveniles who escaped from an acute psychiatric care facility in northwest Washington. They allegedly assaulted an employee and fled with the person’s badge, keys and other belongings, according to authorities and a memo from hospital officials.
The four minors, ranging in age from 14 to 16, were in the custody of the county’s Department of Juvenile Rehabilitation, while two of them were charged with carjacking, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss juvenile matters.
After psychiatric evaluations, they were taken to the Psychiatric Institute of Washington on Wisconsin Avenue NW for treatment, though it was not immediately clear how long each was in the hospital. They left the facility around 9 p.m. Thursday, police said.
According to a memo that hospital officials sent to the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services on Friday morning and viewed by The Washington Post, five “adolescent” patients lured a hospital worker into a patient’s room, then assaulted the person and left, the memo alleged.
One of the five teens was returned to the hospital, the memo said, but the circumstances surrounding the return were not immediately clear.
D.C. police said the four teens were still missing Friday night. The Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
Bonita Bolden, a spokeswoman for the Psychiatric Institute of Washington, said such incidents were “rare” but declined to comment further on the teens’ escape, citing patient confidentiality laws.
One of the juveniles, 16-year-old Andre Dawley, was charged as an adult by federal prosecutors after he was arrested in February. Authorities allege he stole a vehicle and led police on a chase from Prince George’s County into the District before crashing in the 4000 block of South Capitol Street SW. According to court documents, Dawley was trapped in the vehicle at the time of the crash and police found a handgun in his shirt pocket. He was charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle, carrying a handgun without a license and possession of a high-capacity device.
When Dawley was arrested in February, he was also wanted for an armed carjacking and a robbery in November.
During a brief hearing Friday in Washington, D.C., federal court over the alleged escape, Dawley’s attorney Rachel Cicurel said she was concerned about her client, who suffered from “serious mental health issues.” Judge Errol Arthur issued a warrant for Dawley’s arrest.
The other teens who escaped, according to police, were a 14-year-old male, a 15-year-old male and a 16-year-old girl. A person familiar with the case said the 14-year-old was charged with armed carjacking, while the other two were accused of nonviolent crimes. The Post generally does not identify youths it charges as minors.
Thursday’s events came just as a new report from the District’s disability rights watchdog, Disability Rights DC, alleged systemic abuse and neglect at the Psychiatric Institute of Washington. The 36-page report said patients were allegedly sexually and physically assaulted by other patients, and that investigators found many of the hospital’s departments were “understaffed” during a 15-day investigation.
The organization published a similar report in 2022.
Bolden, the hospital spokeswoman, declined to comment on the July report.
