Remigio “Mike” Chavez aka Duke Loco, is photographed on Santa Monica Beach in 2022 by David William Reeve.
Remigio “Mike” Chavez aka Duke Loco, is photographed on Santa Monica Beach in 2022 by David William Reeve.

Gladiator School: Stories from Inside YTS (Ep 13)

“A white horse”

“A white horse”

Mike is photographed in 2022 outside his childhood home near the corner of Pico Boulevard and Union in Los Angeles. Photos by David Reeve.
Remigio “Mike” Chavez in the 90's
Remigio “Mike” Chavez (right) in the late 90s.
Photos of “the hole,” an isolation cell at YTS where Mike frequenty served his time. Photos by David Reeve
The canteen menu from YTS, 1979
Mike lived in this working class community of Olivar del Conde at Padre Hidalgo #93 in Mixcoac, near Mexico City. (Photo from Google Maps, 2022)
Remigio “Mike” Chavez aka Duke Loco, is photographed on Santa Monica Beach in 2022 by David William Reeve.
Remigio “Mike” Chavez aka Duke Loco, is photographed on Santa Monica Beach in 2022 by David William Reeve.
Mike regularly volunteers at his church, distributing food to those in need and takes inspiration from his pastor, Nancy (top right).
The rooftop of the Pico-Union apartment where Mike would gaze over the edge to the koi pond below.

Want to read more? “Gladiator School: Stories from Inside YTS” is a series on Vantage:

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DAVID WILLIAM REEVE is a writer + photographer from Southern California who documents the lives of young people at risk. Contact: davidwilliamreeve (at) gmail

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David William Reeve

DAVID WILLIAM REEVE is a writer + photographer from Southern California who documents the lives of young people at risk. Contact: davidwilliamreeve (at) gmail