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Oregon Teenage Girls Stage Brazen Escape Attempt

A bold and bloody escape attempt from an Oregon lockup sent three guards to the hospital. In a stunning twist, the masterminds behind the well-planned, brazen attempt were not hardened criminals, but rather a group of eight teenage girls ranging from 13 to 17 years old.

Close to midnight on December 20, 2008, several girls staged a fight in a 19-bed dormitory at the Oak Creek Youth Correctional Facility in Albany, according to Oregon Youth Authority spokeswoman Perrin Damon.

When three male guards entered the dorm to break up the fight, they were ambushed. “The kids rushed them,” Damon said. “They had weapons and overpowered them. ... They had weapons fashioned from everyday things.” Damon refused to describe the weapons but said they were used as clubs.

The guards fled to another building as the girls entered the recreation yard, where they attempted to flee through a gate, according to Damon. “They never breached the perimeter,” she said, because a pair of high fences prevented their escape.

Albany police and Linn County sheriff’s deputies were called to help restore order. Officers maintained a presence outside the fences, while others took the girls back into custody. Meanwhile, the three guards were transported to Samari-tan Albany General Hospital. One guard suffered a head wound that required 32 staples; the other two had minor injuries. They were treated and released.

The Oregon State Police and Oregon Youth Authority are investigating the incident.

Sources: The Oregonian, Salem Statesman Journal

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