Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has been serving jail sentence while still playing for the Lakers

Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will continue balling while serving a 25-day prison sentence, according to a report in the LA Times.

Caldwell-Pope’s sentence stems from an incident in March of this year, when KCP was on the Pistons. KCP pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of allowing a person (himself) to operate his vehicle under the influence.

Part of KCP’s probation was to submit to random alcohol and drug screenings, according to the LA Times, Caldwell-Pope missed several of these tests, thus the jail sentence.

While Caldwell-Pope can’t leave the state of California, he can travel back and forth between the Seal Beach Police Department Detention Center and Laker games.

According to the LA Times:

“The 24-year-old is serving his sentence in the Seal Beach Police Department Detention Center and, under a work-release program, is being allowed to leave the facility for games and practices, according to court and jail officials and court documents.”

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The Seal Beach Detention Center is kind of like a boutique prison with a pay-to-stay program for wealthy offenders. According to the LA Times, this particular detention center makes some serious bread off their wealthy inmates:

“The Seal Beach facility is a pay-to-stay operation that has a reputation as a refuge for wealthy offenders. In March, The Times reported that the facility generated more revenue than any other jail in Los Angeles or Orange counties. The majority of its inmates are serving time for driving under the influence and related offenses.”

Basically, wealthy people pay to serve out probation at this center:

“The facility costs $120 dollars a day for those who are in the work release program, and $100 a day for those who are not.”

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is on a cool 1-year/$18 million contract, so he definitely falls into that wealthy offender category.

KCP is averaging 14.2 points and 5 rebounds per game so far this season.