Man Wearing Prison Pants Commits Crime of Fashion

Take it from Jose Gonzales, it’s probably never a good idea to wear L.A. County-issue jail pants into a convenience store in Castaic.

The northern Los Angeles County community is next to the Peter Pitchess jail compound, and area residents are used to keeping an eye out for escapees.

So, when Gonzales, 22, of Pico Rivera, stepped into a minimarket wearing a pair of the jail-issue bottoms Sunday afternoon, the law was immediately summoned.

Finally, after a helicopter and car chase and a jail lock-down, Gonzales was arrested--not for being a jail escapee, as it turned out, or for dubious taste in clothing, but for outstanding warrants.

It was about 3:15 p.m. when Gonzales was spotted in the gas station and convenience store about two miles from the jail. His dark blue pants were clearly stamped “L.A. County Jail” on one leg and a back pocket, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Lt. Daniel Castillo said.

A clerk jotted down the license plate number of Gonzales’ van, and the chase down the Golden State Freeway was on. As a precaution, jail officials went into lock-down mode and began a head count.

The van was pulled over without incident. Inside were Gonzales and six others, Castillo said. None was wearing prison garb, but officers spotted those blue pants under a seat.

Gonzales told the officers he had simply grabbed the jail pants from the family laundry pile that morning without giving it any thought, Castillo said. On occasion, Castillo said, inmates have been permitted to wear prison clothes when released.

Although Gonzales was not an escapee, his name was no stranger to law enforcement computers. Two outstanding warrants were for speeding and driving without a license.

Gonzales was held for the warrants, and as of Sunday night, he had not been issued any jail clothes.