Month: September 2025

Athena Jreij

THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ) — In a unanimous decision Thursday evening, the Coachella Valley Unified School District Board voted to rescind the contract of a newly-hired instructor.

Superintendent Dr. Frances Esparza confirmed the instructor’s contract was rescinded after inappropriate behavior was discovered at a prior district.

It’s raising the question of how background checks are conducted to protect students.

Getting answers, News Channel 3’s Athena Jreij spoke with Superintendent Esparza on their process when hiring.

“When it’s a certificated employee, which is a teacher, a counselor, an administrator, even in leadership, we have to go through a background check, which is our DOJ clearance. It’s a fingerprint situation where it will inform or flag if a person has been inappropriate in, possibly a school district or while working with children,” Esparza said.

Dr. Esparza says because the prior district did not report the inappropriate behavior to the California Commission on Teacher Credentials, it wasn’t flagged in their background check.

“It’s very rare for a district not to report something because there’s education code that states if somebody has done something egregious or any type of misconduct with children, that it is reported by the district, it’s ed code,” Esparza said.

News Channel 3 obtained screenshots from social media posts where parents raised concerns about the new hire, and asked why greater attention wasn’t given to online messages.

“We do have our HR department who looks at reference checks. They look at the DOJ clearance and they do a social media check as well. However, we can’t find every single social media post that students or other parents or organizations put out about certain people,” she said.

It comes as two former CVUSD teachers are in court this week for alleged molestation charges. While those cases weren’t under her leadership, we asked Esparza how they move forward after cases like this.

“We do inform the parents that our first priority is making sure our students are safe. We let them know about the hiring process as well, especially if there’s a school where parents are concerned about a teacher. But we are highly transparent when it comes down to that. And our first and foremost, belief is, again, students first.”

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Luis Avila

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — A striking new landmark has begun to take shape in the heart of downtown Palm Springs. At the intersection of Arenas Road and Indian Canyon Drive, a 65-foot flagpole now stands tall — soon to fly the iconic rainbow flag designed by LGBTQ+ activist and artist Gilbert Baker.

Although the flag has yet to be raised, the installation is already being embraced as a powerful symbol of inclusion, visibility, and resilience in a time when LGBTQ+ representation faces growing challenges across the country.

“With states across the country trying to erase everything that is LGBTQ, from crosswalks to flags — there are even states that have outright banned LGBTQ flags, we are in a city that values us as a community and this flags stands at the historical entrance of where our community has always come to engage and love and be their authentic self.”

Mitchell Battersby, Palm Springs Pride Director of Volunteers

The Arenas District Flagpole Project is a collaboration between Palm Springs Pride and local business owners, with the goal of creating a permanent, highly visible symbol of the city’s commitment to diversity and acceptance.

While the pole is up, organizers say additional funding is needed to complete the project. That includes costs for lighting, maintenance, and other finishing touches. Currently, only about 15% of the fundraising goal has been reached.

Residents and visitors alike are already rallying around the project, viewing it as a reflection of the city’s values.

“I think in the US, across the board — I think our cities need to be inclusive of everybody and I think what Palm Springs is doing here is sending a strong signal that Palm Springs is that inclusive city and everyone is welcome here.”

Stephen Golden, Rancho Mirage Resident

Organizers hope to have the project fully completed by mid-October, ahead of Pride celebrations.

For details on how to donate, click here.

Stay with News Channel 3 for more.

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City News Service

MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A young man who gunned down a 17-year-old Cathedral City boy during a street confrontation that possibly stemmed from prior workplace ill-will was sentenced today to 50 years to life in state prison.   

A Murrieta jury in June deliberated one day before convicting Juan Alfredo Landeros Garcia, 26, of Cathedral City of first-degree murder, shooting at an occupied vehicle and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations for the 2020 slaying of Isaiah Guerra.

During a hearing at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Johnnetta Anderson imposed the sentence required under state law on Garcia.  

According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney’s Office, on the evening of April 4, 2020, Garcia was walking to a relative’s house, crossing near the intersection of Avenida Alvera and McCallum Way, when Guerra drove up in his Hyundai Elantra.   

The victim got Garcia’s attention, but it was unclear what words were exchanged between them. Prosecutors said they had previously worked together at a Palm Springs Italian restaurant, though specific details about their on-the-job relationship and any conflicts were speculative.

During the roadside encounter, Garcia pulled a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and fired 10 times, striking Guerra in the chest, arms and legs as he sat in the driver’s seat of the four-door sedan, according to the brief.

The mortally wounded motorist attempted to drive away but crashed 300 feet from where the gunfire erupted, his vehicle coming to rest on a sidewalk. He died at the scene.

Garcia ran from the location, tearing off his shirt and throwing the pistol onto a rooftop, the brief stated. Security surveillance cameras mounted on homes throughout the neighborhood captured the defendant in his flight, recording images of his tattoos and other salient marks later used to confirm he was the shooter.  

Cathedral City Police Department detectives obtained a warrant for Garcia’s arrest less than a week later, and he was taken into custody without incident at a family member’s property on Modalo Road.

The defendant admitted to his girlfriend, whose identity was not disclosed, that he’d shot the victim, but insisted that the teenager had “banged” on him, referring to gang-related hostility, then asked him, “Do you remember me?” court papers said.   

Garcia told the woman he’d pulled his gun and fired in self-defense.   

The defendant had no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.

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