Montoya Arrives to Start Prison Term a Day Early

Former state Sen. Joseph B. Montoya quietly entered a federal prison camp near the sweltering Mojave Desert town of Boron on Monday, one day before he was scheduled to begin serving a 6 1/2-year sentence for extortion, racketeering and money-laundering.

Trading in his civilian clothes for a standard short-sleeved khaki prison uniform, Montoya, 51, became the first California legislator in 35 years to enter prison for crimes committed while in office. Ending with his resignation in February, the Whittier Democrat had served 11 years in the state Senate and six years in the Assembly.

Montoya did not indicate to officials at the former U.S. Air Force radar station why he reported one day ahead of his mandatory reporting date, Associate Warden Andra Bettencourt said.

“His sentence starts the day he comes in,” she said. “He may just want to get his business taken care of.”

Montoya was assigned a work detail at the minimum-security facility, which houses 485 prisoners. Initially, all inmates are assigned to ground maintenance--sweeping sidewalks and keeping the camp compound clean in temperatures that can soar as high as 122 degrees.

Over the next several days, Montoya will undergo a physical examination, aptitude testing and orientation sessions. Eventually, he will be assigned to a permanent job, which could include maintenance work at Edwards Air Force Base or another military facility near the camp, which is in western San Bernardino County.

Montoya had asked the federal District Court that he be assigned to the federal prison camp at Lompoc, north of Santa Barbara, a facility once regarded as “the country club” of the U.S. correctional system. A number of celebrity felons have served their time at Lompoc, including several political figures who were caught up in the Watergate scandal of the 1970s.

However, the Lompoc camp has been upgraded from a minimum- to medium-security facility and was considered inappropriate for a prisoner like Montoya, who has no prior convictions and is not considered an escape risk.

Montoya’s incarceration near Boron was based on several factors, including his lack of history of violence and the relatively small amount of money involved in his crimes, said Kris Southards, a community corrections specialist with the Federal Prison System in Sacramento.

The Boron facility is one of only two minimum-security federal prisons on the West Coast; the other is in Sheridan, Ore. The California camp has no fence around its perimeter, and prisoners are free to move around the grounds once their work details are completed, usually at about 3:45 p.m.

More than half of the prisoners at Boron have been convicted of drug-related offenses, according to Bettencourt. About 20% were convicted of fraud, 7% of larceny or theft, and 3% of income tax evasion.

Most of the buildings at the Boron camp are air-conditioned. But even on the hottest days, prisoners may be required to work outdoors. Bettencourt noted that the camp’s recreational facilities--including a fitness center with weight-training equipment--are covered but located outside.

Visiting privileges at the remote Boron camp are relatively generous--up to three evenings a week, and all day on weekends. Montoya has been assigned to a room for up to four prisoners, who sleep on double bunks.

In February, a federal jury in Sacramento found Montoya guilty on seven counts of using his office for personal gain after the lawmaker had been caught in an elaborate federal sting operation that focused on political corruption in the state capital. Crucial to the prosecution’s case was a videotape showing the then-senator accepting a $3,000 payment from an undercover agent at a breakfast meeting.

Montoya has appealed his conviction, but earlier this month he lost an attempt to delay his sentence until the appeal was decided.