Four teens walk away from unfenced Camp Glenwood

Four juveniles walked away from a detention center in La Honda Sunday night and may still be hiding in the woods, Stu Forrest, San Mateo County chief probation officer, said Monday.

San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies conducted an extensive search of the area near Camp Glenwood on Log Cabin Road after 9 p.m. when the boys were reported missing, the Sheriff’s Office reported.

Camp Glenwood is an unfenced treatment center that has had a least 40 juveniles walkaway from the site since 2006, according to a San Mateo County Civil Grand Jury report this year, including 16-year-old Adrian Sedano in August 2008.

Sedano is accused of killing a man in Redwood City a short time after escaping the camp, prompting an investigation by the grand jury on the safety of the "honor camp.”

According to Camp Glenwood staff on scene Sunday night, the juveniles fled the facility on foot as they were returning to their dorm rooms after their evening recreation period, reported Lt. Ray Lunny.

Deputies combed the area on foot for more than an hour and used a K-9 trained in tracking to search for the four boys, some allegedly affiliated with the Norteño street gang.

A countywide "be on the lookout” was sent to local law enforcement agencies of the walkaway. A San Mateo County alert was also sent out to area residents advising them of the incident. The four juveniles have not been located, Lunny reported.

All four juveniles were incarcerated for non-violent offenses. The first suspect is described as a Hispanic male juvenile, 15 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 160 pounds, wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt.

The second suspect is described as a Hispanic male juvenile, 15 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall, 135 pounds, wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt.

The third suspect is described as a Hispanic male juvenile, 17 years old, 5 feet 1 inches tall, wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt.

The fourth suspect is described as a black male juvenile, 15 years old, 5 feet 10 inches tall, 185 pounds, wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt.

The Sheriffs’ Office is also looking for the driver of a white 2007 Nissan Altima seen driving in the area at about 11:15 p.m. Sunday. A worker at the camp noticed the vehicle drive by several times after the juveniles escaped.

Lunny could not confirm any gang affiliation since the juveniles were in the custody of the Probation Department but did say there has been less walkaways at the facility in the past year.

Sheriff’s deputies and probation officers planned to search the area again last night, Forrest said.

Camp Glenwood was the subject of a civil grand jury report following Sedano’s walkaway in August that allegedly led to a homicide in Redwood City.

Sedano, 16, escaped the camp and ended up being charged with murder after he was accused of fatally stabbing a 23-year-old Redwood City man the following week.

Also in August, another 16-year-old boy walked away from the facility only to be found the following day hiding in a bathroom near Alice’s Restaurant near Skyline Boulevard and La Honda Road.

After investigating the detention facility, the civil grand jury recommended the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors to keep Camp Glenwood an unfenced honor camp.

Supervisor Mark Church agrees with the recommendation.

"Putting up a fence would change the culture and environment of the facility,” Church said. "Most kids progress well and are returned home to their parents after being provided with the tools for success.”

A fence, Church said, would defeat the purpose of an "honor camp.”

"If the facility is fenced it may ultimately house more serious offenders,” Church said. "And there is no guarantee a fence would prevent walkaways.”

Glenwood Camp is a treatment environment and is not meant to be a lock-up facility, Forrest said.

"My main concern is getting them back safe and hopefully they don’t do anything to get in more trouble,” Forrest said.

In a letter written to the Board of Supervisors dated Nov. 3, 2008, the San Mateo County Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Commission stated that "a fence is not a guarantee there will be no escapes, and it could lull staff into a false sense of security resulting in more walkaways, not less.” The Probation Department also initially discussed, with the Juvenile Court and the Board of Supervisors, fencing Glenwood at an approximate cost of $930,000, but decided that with the implementation of new policies and procedures, fencing the premises would not be necessary, according to the civil grand jury report.

Any person who may have witnessed the incident or has any additional information is encouraged to call Sheriff’s Office Detective Marcus Gathright at 363-7823.

Bill Silverfarb can be reached by e-mail: silverfarb@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.