Mother of missing kids tries to escape psychiatric hospital

A mother suspected in the disappearance of her two children has repeatedly tried to escape from a maximum-security psychiatric hospital.

Citing court records filed in Montgomery District Court, the Washington Post reports that 29-year-old Catherine Hoggle has tried to escape at least eight times from Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center in Jessup. Each time, Hoggle grabbed a staff member's security badge and ran toward the door of her locked unit.

Hoggle is charged with neglect, abduction and hindering in the 2014 disappearance of her children.

Prosecutors say they believe Hoggle is faking incompetency so that the court can release her to the community after a period of time. Her attorney, David Felsen, says prosecutors should accept the psychiatric hospital's opinion that Hoggle has a poor understanding of legal concepts.