Teenager who escaped care in stolen vehicle fails to appear at court hearing
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A teenage boy failed to appear at a scheduled court hearing on Wednesday and his mother acknowledged she has not heard from the teen in several weeks. The 13-year-old was staying at a hotel after being released from juvenile detention but disappeared after stealing a car from his treatment provider last month, according to court records.
The case highlights the lack of resources available to treat young offenders in Minnesota who often have nowhere to go.
Court hearing
Judge Todd Fellman said he was, "very, very concerned" about the safety and well-being of a child on the run with special needs. He has ordered "active efforts" to find the boy, which included a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Stolen car
The boy was staying at the Staybridge Suites in Bloomington where he was receiving care from respite providers. According to police, one of those providers left his car keys on the counter while using the bathroom. The child took the keys and left in a Toyota Highlander.
The car was later found in Minneapolis, but the boy has not been seen since.
In a statement, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said it is barred from commenting due to the age of the child.
"As we have stated previously, our community faces an urgent crisis stemming from a lack of appropriate resources to meet the complex needs of our most vulnerable youth."
Nowhere to go
The boy was staying at the hotel under electronic monitoring because he is incompetent due to his age.
Children found incompetent cannot be held in detention for more than 24 hours.
FOX 9 has done extensive reporting on the emerging crisis involving troubled kids in the juvenile justice system.
Earlier this year, a 12-year-old boy was also transferred to a respite hotel for care. A judge ordered his release after the boy was illegally held in juvenile detention for weeks. Hennepin County repeatedly tried to have the boy placed in a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) but kids are consistently denied admission because there are only four such treatment centers in Minnesota and they often lack staffing and other resources.
County funding treatment facility
In an effort to address the crisis on a local level, Hennepin County recently allocated $22M for a youth behavioral health crisis stabilization center in south Minneapolis.
The county will spend $15 million to convert a county treatment facility to house troubled youth in a secure setting outside juvenile detention. Another $7 million will go toward ongoing care and programming. The project is expected to add up to 15 beds for kids in need.