Lollipop Fine Leaves a Sour Taste

The defendant known to some lawmen as the “Candyman” is due in court this month, defiantly promising he won’t be suckered into any sort of plea bargain. The fact that he was even busted in the first place sticks in his craw.

Never mind that authorities have offered to slash the fine from $300 to $90. Michael Prendiz says he doesn’t deserve the rap.

Michael, 14, was popped by deputies on charges of unlawful consumption of a lollipop on a Santa Clarita Transit bus. The infraction falls under Section 640b of the California Penal Code, which affirms local ordinances outlawing smoking, eating or drinking on public transportation.

“The fact is, a lollipop is still a food item that’s going to end up trashing the bus,” said Sgt. Jim Morrow of the Santa Clarita sheriff’s station. “The bus drivers tell them [students] constantly that there’s no eating or drinking. They vandalize the seats, scratch graffiti into the seats, take food and basically trash the inside of the bus.”

Michael, on Friday, called the case “pretty ridiculous.”

The youngster pleaded not guilty at his arraignment last month in Los Angeles County Juvenile Court. Because the matter involved a juvenile, the case moved directly from the Sheriff’s Department to the court without wending through the district attorney’s office.

Michael has returned to West Ranch High School in Valencia, where he is a nearly straight-A freshman, attentive to his homework when he’s not playing the saxophone for his church band.

His father, Joel Prendiz, doesn’t necessarily deny that the lad unlawfully licked the lollipop. But, he said, “It’s a waste of everyone’s time and money, especially the court’s.”

What really irks Prendiz, a service technician for SBC in the San Fernando Valley, is that Michael received no warning before being slapped with the fine.

“I could see if he was eating a hamburger or something on the bus, or if he had a soda can, but to have a sucker in his mouth?” Prendiz said. “They could have said, ‘Throw out the candy. If we see you doing something like this again, we’re going to cite you.’ ”

Instead, a deputy addressed Michael as “Candyman” and ordered him to walk to the front of the bus when the youngster was caught in the act, Prendiz said.

“They didn’t say ‘young man’ or anything like that,” the father said. “They said, ‘Candyman, come up to the front.’ It’s like they were trying to antagonize him. They wanted to see what kind of reaction they would get from him.”

Morrow said it is up to deputies, who regularly ride buses to deter vandalism and other crimes, to decide whether to issue a warning or write a citation.

They also enforce posted rules that ban food and drinks, Morrow said.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which serves most of Los Angeles County, has the same rules, also enforced at the discretion of deputies, said spokesman Rick Jager.

Prendiz said he and Michael intend to fight the charges in court April 11, when the deputy who made the collar is expected to tell his side of the story. A judge would then decide whether to order Michael to pay the fine.