Deliberations begin in trial of man accused of fatally shooting Cathedral City store owner
City News Service
INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury deliberations began today in the trial of a man accused of gunning down a Cathedral City convenience store owner during a botched robbery, while testimony continued in the separate trial of his alleged co-conspirator.
Charles Lamar Campbell of Beaumont and Joel Ortiz Hidalgo of Desert Hot Springs, both 23, allegedly joined in the 2021 slaying of 61-year-old Chris Sgouromitis of Cathedral City.
Charles Lamar Campbell (Left) and Joel Ortiz Hidalgo (Right)
Both men are charged with first-degree murder, attempted robbery and a special circumstance allegation of killing in the course of a robbery. Campbell is additionally charged with sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.
Two juries — one for each defendant — were convened to hear the matter, and after almost three weeks, testimony concluded in Campbell’s trial Tuesday. On Wednesday, the prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, where Riverside County Superior Court Judge Otis Sterling sent jurors behind closed doors to begin weighing evidence. They deliberated briefly, then broke for the day, slated to return Thursday morning.
Testimony in Hidalgo’s trial is expected to wrap up Thursday or Friday.
Each man was being held without bail at the Benoit Detention Center. According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney’s Office, on the night of Feb. 21, 2021, Campbell and Hidalgo were driving around the Coachella Valley in the latter’s Acura sedan, seeking to purchase a “plug” of marijuana. When a transaction fell through in Palm Springs, the men headed into Cathedral City, where Campbell directed Hidalgo onto Shifting Sands Trail and, ultimately, the Outpost Market at the intersection of Shifting Sands and Ramon Road, according to court papers.
While Hidalgo sat behind the wheel of his car, Campbell entered the convenience store, long owned and operated by Sgouromitis and his family, prosecutors said.
Although no one else was in the outlet, security surveillance video cameras inside were operating, capturing almost all of the ensuing encounter between the victim and defendant, according to the brief.
“The victim had the cash register open and appeared to be counting or organizing cash in the register as Campbell walked in … holding a semiautomatic handgun,” the narrative stated.
There were words between the men, which the video cameras did not record. The images, however, revealed Campbell allegedly raising the pistol, holding it with both hands and aiming it at the victim. The defendant fired a shot while backing toward the double doors, striking Sgouromitis in the left hip, prosecutors alleged.
When the store owner tried to run away from the counter, Campbell allegedly fired two more shots, hitting the victim in the chest and lower back, according to the brief.
The gunfire evidently frightened Hidalgo, who sped away from the location as Campbell exited the store, the prosecution said. Campbell was forced to flee on foot through residences lining Shifting Sands, and during his getaway, he accidentally fired his 9mm pistol into a yard, where the homeowner was watching, according to court papers.
Sgouromitis’ brother, who had been resting in a room at the back of the store when the shots rang out, initiated CPR on his sibling until Cathedral City Police Department officers arrived and took over, followed by paramedics moments later. However, the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was a beloved member of the community, and CCPD released a statement within a few days of his murder, saying he was a “father of four with strong local ties, who was not involved in criminal activity and died in his longtime place of business.”
Hidalgo’s Acura was soon identified as the vehicle that had parked outside the convenience store, and the license plate was confirmed via Flock law enforcement camera recordings in Palm Springs, leading to his being tracked down and detained for questioning less than a week later.
The defendant provided details regarding what allegedly had transpired, insisting that he was only giving Campbell a ride to get some marijuana and had no foreknowledge of the planned robbery, according to the brief. He was formally arrested at the police station.
Campbell was located staying in a Beaumont motel, where detectives went to serve an arrest warrant, listening through the door as he conversed via speaker phone with his mother, allegedly telling her, “The driver was arrested, and all he has to do is give me up,” according to the prosecution.
Officers ordered him out of the room, at which point the defendant was taken into custody without incident.
Neither man has documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.