Eleazar Gonzales

A man described by police as one of the most dangerous gang members in the city has been arrested on suspicion of murder in one of three recent gang shootings--two months after he was acquitted in another murder case.

After handing down the harshest murder sentence possible, an Orange County Superior Court judge urged a hard-core gang member to reform, if not for himself then for his 7-year-old daughter. But as he was led from the courtroom in shackles, Eleazar Gonzales, 25, of Santa Ana, told a courtroom marshal, "I'll be back." Gonzales, called one of the city's most dangerous gang members, was convicted of second-degree murder in the April, 20, 1990, slaying of 17-year-old Roger Ochoa, also of Santa Ana.

After handing down the harshest murder sentence possible, an Orange County Superior Court judge urged a hard-core gang member to reform, if not for himself then for his 7-year-old daughter. But as he was led from the courtroom in shackles, Eleazar Gonzales, 25, of Santa Ana, told a courtroom marshal, "I'll be back." Gonzales, called one of the city's most dangerous gang members, was convicted of second-degree murder in the April, 20, 1990, slaying of 17-year-old Roger Ochoa, also of Santa Ana.

A man described by police as one of the most dangerous gang members in the city has been arrested on suspicion of murder in one of three recent gang shootings--two months after he was acquitted in another murder case.

I was shocked and saddened to read that Eleazar Gonzales, while escaping from Orange County Jail, injured his arm, leg and suffered rope burns on his fingers and scrapes on his back and chin. The county should provide protective clothing for these felons. ACLU, where are you? THAD BENSON Huntington Beach

FBI agents in Denver arrested two of the four inmates who escaped from the Orange County Jail in Santa Ana on Nov. 20. Robbery-kidnaping suspect Steven Wilson and burglary suspect Richard Fluharty, both 26, were taken into custody without incident, said Orange County Sheriff's Lt. Dick Olson. The two still had a car stolen in Santa Ana on the night of their escape, Olson said.

Four Orange County Jail inmates, including an accused killer, were at large after cutting through a fence in a rooftop recreation area and rappelling to the ground using sheets. It was the third escape in five years in which the same method and route were used, and lax security was blamed. "It's a matter of a couple of deputies not doing their jobs," said a highly placed jail source who insisted on anonymity. A fifth inmate broke his leg during the escape and was back in custody, officials said.

Two escapees from Orange County Jail who were captured Sunday in Colorado will contest their extradition to California, officials said Tuesday. Lt. Richard Olson, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department, estimated that the legal procedure, in which Gov. George Deukmejian would ask Colorado's governor to extradite the two fugitives, will take 60 to 90 days. Steven Wilson, 26, and Richard Fluharty, also 26, were arrested Sunday by FBI agents who staked out a Westminster, Colo.

By the time he was 22 years old, Eleazar Gonzales had been acquitted of one murder, charged with another and had earned a reputation as one of the city's most dangerous gang members. But Gonzalez will spend much of the next two decades behind bars after an Orange County Superior Court jury on Tuesday convicted the Santa Ana resident, now 24, of second-degree murder in the April 20, 1990, slaying of 17-year-old Roger Ochoa.

Eleazar Gonzales, one of four inmates who escaped from the Orange County Jail on Sunday night, walked into the Santa Ana police station on Thanksgiving night and surrendered, officials said. "He came in with his family--his daughter and his mom and dad," Santa Ana Police Lt. Greg Cooper said. "The desk officer recognized him and there was a gentleman's nod or smile between them and the officer took him into custody." After he surrendered at 7:25 p.m.

Four inmates being held on felony charges, including one accused of murder, escaped Sunday night from the Orange County Jail by cutting a hole in security fencing around a rooftop recreation area and then lowering themselves with a sheet, a Sheriff's Department spokesman said. A fifth inmate broke his leg in an apparent fall from the fourth-floor roof and was found on a lower rooftop of the jail when sheriff's deputies began searching for the escapees, Lt. Richard Olsen said.

Exactly 2 weeks after their daring escape, two fugitives from Orange County Jail were captured without incident Sunday by agents of the FBI in a Denver suburb, authorities said. Arrested at a large apartment complex in Westminster, Colo., were Richard Fluharty, 26, who faces burglary charges in Orange County, and Steven Wilson, 26, who is charged with robbery, kidnaping, assault with a deadly weapon and burglary.