The Sybil Brand Institute is a disused women's

jail A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are imprisoned under the authority of the state, usually as punishment for various cr ...

in Monterey Park,

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

, California. It is named for 20th century jail conditions activist

Sybil Brand Sybil Brand (née Morris; May 8, – February 17, 2004) was an American philanthropist and activist, best known locally for her work in improving jail conditions for women in Los Angeles. She was the namesake of the Sybil Brand Institute (S ...

. The jail was completed in 1963 and at one time had over 2,000 inmates. It was closed in 1997 because of its poor physical condition as a result of damage suffered during the

1994 Northridge earthquake The 1994 Northridge earthquake affected Greater Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1994, at 04:30:55 PST. The epicenter of the moment 6.7 () blind thrust earthquake was beneath the San Fernando Valley. Lasting approximately 8 seconds ...

. The jail was referenced in the legal drama TV series ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and four short stories, all of which involve a ...

'' in the 1965 episode "The Case of the Laughing Lady".

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American actress and inventor. After a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial erotic romantic drama '' Ecstasy ...

was briefly jailed at the Sybil Brand Institute after being arrested for shoplifting in January 1966. The jail is referenced in

Kate Braverman Kate Braverman (February 5, 1949 – October 12, 2019) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and poet. Los Angeles was the focus for much of her writing. Formative years Kate Braverman was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 5 ...

's 1993 fiction novel Wonders of the West starting on the very first page of the text. Since 1997, the former jail location has been used in movies and television shows such as '' 24'', '' Reno 911!: Miami'', ''

CSI CSI may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media CSI franchise * ''CSI'' (franchise) ** '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', the original ''CSI'' television series, set in Las Vegas ** '' CSI: Miami'', the first spin-off series starring David ...

'', ''

Legally Blonde ''Legally Blonde'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Robert Luketic and written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, based on Amanda Brown's novel. It stars Reese Witherspoon, Luke Wilson, Selma Blair, Matthew Davis, Victo ...

'', '' Torchwood: Miracle Day'' ''

Desperate Housewives ''Desperate Housewives'' is an American mystery comedy-drama television series created by Marc Cherry, and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012, for a tota ...

'', ''

Jackie Brown ''Jackie Brown'' is a 1997 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, based on the 1992 novel ''Rum Punch'' by Elmore Leonard. It stars Pam Grier as Jackie Brown, a flight attendant who smuggles money between the United Sta ...

'', and '' S.W.A.T.''.

References

Prisons in Los Angeles County, California 1963 establishments in California Defunct prisons in California Monterey Park, California {{California-struct-stub