2 Inmates Hurt, 1 Arrested in Another Melee at Castaic Jail

In the fourth melee in four days between black and Latino inmates at the Los Angeles County jail in Castaic, two inmates suffered serious stab wounds and another was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon Wednesday, the Sheriff’s Department said.

The brawl started as a dispute between a black and a Latino over use of a telephone about 6:45 p.m. and quickly escalated into a fight which took on racial overtones. It involved all 41 inmates in a dormitory of the maximum security North Facility of the Peter J. Pitchess Honor Rancho, Deputy Mary Landreth said.

Two inmates were treated at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital. One, age 30, had a collapsed lung. The other, 35, suffered a stab wound in the back. Angel Tamayo, 27, who was awaiting trial on murder charges and has also been charged with bringing a weapon into the jail, was arrested on charges of stabbing an inmate.