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Juvenile Jail Escape Latest for Troubled Facility

The Nashville juvenile detention center where 30 teens escaped under a fence Monday night has a long history of violence, sexual abuse and previous attempts to break out.

All but seven of the teens from the Woodland Hills Youth Development Center in Nashville were taken back into custody on Tuesday, a day after they escaped. Officials said they had kicked out metal panels under the windows in common areas of their dorms to reach the courtyard and slipped out under a weak spot in the perimeter fence.

The facility was the site of a 2004 breakout attempt in which more than a dozen teens injured 16 staffers before they were dispersed by police. In 2010, the Department of Justice ranked the facility as 13th in the country for reports of sexual abuse by staffers.

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