SOUTHLAND : Killer Escapes Women’s Prison
A woman serving a maximum life sentence for killing her husband in 1984 escaped from the California Institution for Women at Frontera near Chino, apparently after a visit with her father, authorities said today.
Jeanette Hughes, 36, was discovered missing about 9 p.m. Sunday, when visiting hours ended, said Ross Dykes, associate warden at the women’s prison.
Prison officials searched the open visiting room, Hughes’ housing facility and checked the prison grounds with dogs before determining about midnight that she was not inside the facility’s boundaries.
Hughes, formerly of Huntington Beach, was sentenced in 1986 to 26 years to life for the slaying two years earlier of her husband, James.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
