CONS ON THE RUN: The fourth escape...

CONS ON THE RUN: The fourth escape from the new Lancaster state prison since it opened last February has local civic leaders grumbling (B1). Although the fugitive was quickly recaptured--he was injured by the compactor of the garbage truck he hid in--”I can’t convince people it’s a safe prison when we keep having these escapes,” said the head of the prison’s community advisory committee.

SIGN OF JUSTICE: It may be unusual to have two different types of sign language interpreter in one trial, such as the Val Lamar Smith case (A1), but signing is not uncommon in the courts. Los Angeles County Superior Court has 10 sign language specialists, out of 550 contracted court interpreters for 80 languages. They get $210 a day. . . . Sign language interpreters are the second-most used, after Spanish.

WHERE’S THAT BALL? Valley football fans--some in comfy local bars and others bundled against the cold in Orchard Park, N.Y.--will be watching the Raiders’ playoff today against the Buffalo Bills (C1). In Orchard Park, where the wind-chill factor is expected to hit 40 below zero today, Raiders defensive end Howie Long (above) tried to clear away snow without losing his grip on a cup of hot coffee.

FANSICLES: “We’re prepared,” said Debra Zeldin of Canoga Park, typical of the die-hard fans who traveled east. “I have three or four pairs of socks, thermals, about four sweat shirts and coats and blankets.” Zeldin and her mother were among about a dozen Raider Booster Club members who flew into Buffalo on Friday--staying at the same hotel as their heroes. “They need all the love they can get out there,” she said.

STREETS OF CALABASAS: Nostalgic for “Bonanza?” Nowhere to wear your Marshal Dillon and Kitty outfits? Calabasas city officials plan to gussy up the area around the historic Leonis Adobe into an Old West-style shopping and dining mecca, with period signs, street lights, wooden sidewalks and planters (B2).