SANTA ANA : Jail Inmate Escapes From Local Hospital

An Orange County Jail inmate was being sought Sunday after she escaped from a local hospital, authorities said.

JoAnne Gonzalez, 24, escaped at 10:05 p.m. Saturday from Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, where she had been taken for examination, Sheriff’s Lt. Harold Schaffroth said.

Gonzalez had been in custody since early Friday morning on warrants for prostitution, he said.

Schaffroth, who did not know which law enforcement department had placed Gonzalez under arrest, said the woman had been an inmate at the jail when she was taken to the hospital for examination. The reason for her visit to the hospital was confidential, he said.

However, at the hospital, “when the deputy’s attention was distracted, she slipped her handcuffs and got away,” Schaffroth said. “Investigators have been assigned to locate Ms. Gonzalez, and she is not considered dangerous to others,” he said.

Gonzalez, who was last seen wearing an Orange County Jail-issue blue jumpsuit, was described as being about 5 feet, 2 inches tall, weighing 140 pounds and having black hair and brown eyes.