Report Claims Dozens of ‘Escapes’ From Western State Hospital

In the wake of the escape of a dangerous murderer patient from the troubled Western State Hospital in Lakewood, WA, reports indicate  there have been literally dozens of 'escapes,' or 'walkaways' as the hospital calls them over the last three years.

Officials at the facility said such incidents are rare, and said there's only been a couple of them. But records indicate of the 185 unauthorized departures of patients, several of them were people considered dangerous to the general public.

28-year-old Anthony Garver grabbed national headlines when he and another patient escaped from Lakewood by climbing out a broken window in early April. Garver was committed to Lakewood after being found incompetent to stand trial for the 2013 murder of a woman, who was found stabbed 24 times.

A look at records released by the hospital show eight of the 185 people who left unauthorized committed crimes while on the outside. Hospital officials said the vast majority of the incidents involved patients who failed to return when required during visits that were allowed by the facility.

A new CEO has been named to try to remedy issues at the mental facility.