6 Boys Knock Out Guard, Escape Juvenile Hall

Six teenage boys fought the law, and the law won: They briefly escaped from a juvenile detention center in Washington state last night after knocking out a female staff member, but all were captured early today in nearby woods, authorities said. The King County Sheriff's department said it received word of the escape about 11:30pm yesterday from Echo Glen Children's Center in Snoqualmie, about 25 miles east Seattle. "They basically attacked the staff member, knocked her out, took her keys, and fled," a spokeswoman said.

The six males ranged in age from 15 to 17 and were serving time for offenses including assault, possession of firearms, and burglary, she said. Law officers on the ground with search dogs and in the air combed the area on the outskirts of Snoqualmie before a helicopter crew spotted them in woods. All were caught by 2am today. "The biggest reason they were apprehended so quickly was the helicopter," said the spokeswoman. "Without that we would have been looking for needles in a haystack." She says the staff member suffered a non-life threatening injury to her head. (More juvenile crime stories.)