VENTURA COUNTY ROUNDUP : CONEJO VALLEY : Jailbird Enjoys Fund-Raising Gig

Doing jail time doesn’t always have to be dismal. When Caroline Langkilde left her office Tuesday, she took a limousine to her temporary incarceration.

Langkilde, who works at Shaver Pontiac-Jeep in Thousand Oaks, was one of about 50 Conejo Valley residents who donated their time to help raise money for the Mid-State Chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Assn.

While they were “jailed” at the Westlake Village Inn and Restaurant, the prisoners were allowed to call friends, relatives and others to raise “bail money” for the nonprofit organization.

Once Langkilde arrived at the inn, she was fingerprinted and photographed. After being booked, she sat down in her black and white striped shirt at one of the two dozen tables in the restaurant and made the first of her four phone calls and raised nearly $100 for charity.

“This is so fun,” Langkilde said. “I should do this again next year. When I first tell people I’m in jail they laugh. I just called my husband--he said he doesn’t want to get me out. So I talked to his boss to get a donation.”

With fund-raising behind her, Langkilde was allowed more than just bread and water. Participants sampled a sumptuous buffet of lunch meats, salads and breads.

Muscular dystrophy is a genetic disease that slowly breaks down the body. The association provides medical insurance, support groups and research for cures and treatments for 42 types of muscular diseases.

“What we’re doing is fighting for Jerry’s Kids,” said Ron McConnell, district director of the mid-state chapter, which covers Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Louis Obispo counties.

Each of the jailbirds was asked to raise $1,000 for the event, he said. But if $1,000 wasn’t raised, the prisoner was able to visit the judge and plead for an early release.

Last year, $15,000 was raised in the Conejo Valley; the association hoped to raise $20,000 in the area this year. Last year, the association raised a total of $500,000.