Author: KESQ

Kendall Flynn

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – The College of the Desert Board of Trustees has chosen Val Martinez Garcia as its new superintendent/president.

The board approved the hire with a 3-2 vote during a special meeting on May 14. School officials said contract details are finalized and Martinez Garcia was presented for approval during a meeting on Friday.

Stay with News Channel 3 as we sit down with the newly appointed superintendent/president to discuss his goals and plans.

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Athena Jreij

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — In the aftermath of the Palm Springs fertility clinic terrorist attack, News Channel 3 is holding officials accountable to see how this attack will change enforcement.

Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills is no stranger to domestic terrorism. Before Palm Springs, Mills worked in counter-terrorism measures in the San Diego Police Department.

Sitting down with News Channel 3’s Athena Jreij, Chief Mills addressed if the attack could’ve been prevented had there been more surveillance by authorities.

“Yes, if people saw those things and brought them forward to government, to the police.”

Mills says now the department plans to ramp up their counter-terrorism enforcement, which looks at ‘threat domains,’ or extremist groups in the area and the risk they pose to marginalized groups.

According to the Chief, vulnerable groups in the area include the desert’s LGBTQ+, Jewish and Hispanic populations. It’s why they keep a close eye on local hate groups.

“In the county, you have Proud Boys. You also have Oath Keepers and and other Three Percenters. Our biggest fear and concern is white supremacy, the folks in the far, far right who, don’t have an off switch,” Mills said.

The department has also been on the lookout for copy cats, or people who could be inspired by the crime’s infamy.

“I do not believe, in the depths of my heart that there is a, substantial threat to our community. Could, a copycat do this again? Yeah. But you have to remember, it takes time to acquire the resources and materials to put all this together. There are tripwires in place for government to find out. If, if somebody is is doing this kind of thing.”

However, to our knowledge Guy Edward Bartkus wasn’t apart of those extremist groups and rather, used the internet to spread his fringe ideology of pro-mortalism, anti-natalism.

It’s why Chief Mills says keeping a close eye on social platforms is also a priority. The department’s Real Time Crime Center will also bring a new element to public safety. The center has been approved by the City Council and is set up to be the largest radar-enabled drone responder system in the U.S.

“We’ll have not only drones operating, but, software in that Real Time Crime Center. Someone will be sitting in there running the license plate, checking the fly cameras. Was there was there anybody else in the car? We have other cameras that around town that we can pull up,” Mills said.

The most important part to preventing something like this again? Eyes on the ground from the public.

“If you see it, you own it. If you’re the person who’s online, one of these chat groups and I espouse something that is going to harm other people, you own it morally.”

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Allie Anthony

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — After Saturday’s bombing at a Palm Springs IVF clinic left dozens of buildings damaged, residents and business owners are shaken — but already looking ahead to recovery.

City leaders are assuring the community that Palm Springs is safe and will rebuild. Local businesses have begun repairing broken windows and clearing debris, while city crews continue to assess the damage.

“Our fire department, engineering, and a crew are walking down both Indian and Palm Canyon assessing each physical structure, taking consensus of the damage and then coming up with the list of what needs to be done,” Mayor Ron deHarte said. “We are finding out what type of support is available for not only our business owners, but the residents who sustained damage.”

As part of the recovery effort, residents are encouraged to share their support for the city on social media using the hashtag #ILovePalmSprings.

#ILovePalmSprings

The campaign is aimed at showing resilience, promoting unity, and supporting local businesses ahead of the summer slowdown.

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Joel Killam

THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ) — The Coachella Valley Unified School District board voted Tuesday night to approve layoffs for 82 employees and reduce hours for 17 others, as part of a sweeping effort to address a multimillion-dollar budget shortfall.

The decision follows a recommendation from an administrative law judge, who reviewed the district’s proposed reduction in force during a formal hearing last month. The layoffs are set to take effect June 30.

District officials say the cuts are necessary to help close a projected budget deficit of more than $50 million. The board initially approved a resolution in February to eliminate or reduce 262 classified positions, citing a lack of work and funding.

During Tuesday’s meeting, some voiced concerns about the impact the cuts could have on student services, including transportation, food services, and special education support.

“I understand there’s a budget crisis. I understand that,” one employee said during public comment. “But to cut so many hours from us… hours and months, it’s impossible.”

News Channel 3 will continue to follow this developing story.

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Jesus Reyes

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. (KESQ) – Riverside County released updated data from this year’s Homeless Point-in-Time Count.

As we reported last week, the data shows that homelessness in Riverside County continues to grow, but the rate is slowing.

This week, the county provided a breakdown on unsheltered and sheltered homeless in Coachella Valley cities.

The report shows that homelessness is up from two years ago, however, there was a 19% decrease in unsheltered homelessness. The county’s program outcomes also revealed that more than 80% of people maintained housing stability over two years.

Data shows that the top three reasons reported for unsheltered homelessness in the county were Family Disruption, Lack of Income, and Unemployment.

You can check out the full summary below:

Attachment-79801Download

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KESQ News Team

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – Connecting cultures through art and architecture. Students in Palm Springs participated in a cultural exchange with students from San Miguel de Allende in Mexico, which is Palm Springs’ sister city.

The four-day cultural exchange involves bilingual students from Vista Del Monte Elementary in Palm Springs and students from Newland School in San Miguel de Allende….

It is centered around a project called “Modernism Art in a Box.” Through virtual meetups, the students are exploring modernist architecture, climate, and culture — and even built their own designs inspired by what they learned.

“Students have been able to interact with each other through Zoom through video, and so we’ve had some positive feedback along with the teachers being in communication,” said Jamie Santos, principal at Vista Del Monte.   

This is one of the many efforts between Palm Springs and San Miguel de Allende to work together to exchange culture and uplift students.

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City News Service

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – The Board of Supervisors today unanimously approved a resolution declaring that Riverside County’s animal shelters will promote “no-kill” polices and practices that seek to ensure 90% of canines and felines who are impounded leave alive.   

“It took us a while to get here with this resolution,” board Chairman Manuel Perez said. “This is from the county coming together and understanding the gravity of the issue. The goal is to save as many animals as possible.”

The measure, among other things, contains a pledge that the county will “work collaboratively with public and private partners, animal welfare organizations, veterinary professionals, contract cities and residents … to reduce euthanasia.”

The 90% no-kill goal will entail greater emphasis on free or low-cost spay and neuter clinics, enhanced “return-to-owner” programs that unite lost pets with their loved ones, adoption campaigns and expedited “trap-neuter-return-to-field” programs that were inaugurated in March 2024.

Attachment-80122Download

County CEO Jeff Van Wagenen said a complement to the resolution is the newly activated “data dashboard” available via the Department of Animal Services’ web portal that depicts “intakes,” or the number of pets impounded on a given day, along with “outcomes,” showing whether animals have been adopted, transferred, returned to owners or euthanized.  

“With the goal of 90%, we’re not prepared to plant a flag and say by `X’ date, this will be done,” Van Wagenen said. “We’re reporting results as we go. Yes, there will be a financial impact.”

He indicated the upcoming 2025-26 budget hearings may include a request from the Department of Animal Services for a $5 million outlay to hire over two dozen new employees to serve as caretakers, processors, control officers and administrators. The next fiscal year likely will also include a request for appropriations to expand space at each of the county’s four shelters, where the kennels are constantly operating at maximum capacity, he said.

While no one complained about the motives behind the resolution, several residents addressed the board about its application.   

“This is nothing more than wasted paper,” a woman identified as “Jennifer” said in a call-in comment. “If this is merely to placate the public, it will not do. All these people at the helm are not going to change anything. We will wait and wait and wait for change to occur.”  

Another woman, “Mara,” further dismissed the dependability of the leadership now overseeing the Department of Animal Services.   

“These self-proclaimed saviors gave you a pitch, and you fell for it,” she said. “These so-called consultants have caused so many problems in California and other places. They’re charlatans who show up and say, `We’re the answers to your problems.'”

She was particularly incensed by the trap-neuter-return-to-field policy, which entails surgically fixing cats impounded at shelters, then turning them loose to become “community cats,” free to roam where they were originally found.

“They’re getting run over in the street every day,” she said. “While searching for safety, they’re getting mangled.”

Perez expressed dismay at the criticism, noting, “It seems like, no matter where we turn, it’s never enough. We’re willing to take it. But after a while, that’s not going to lead us … where we need to get to.”

The department is in the early stages of a reformation initiated last year by the county board.   

A lawsuit filed in August by Rancho Mirage-based Walter Clark Law Group is seeking a permanent injunction against the department’s euthanasia programs. Clark called it a “ground-breaking case” that’s predicated on the 1998 Hayden Act. That legislation, authored by then-state Sen. Tom Hayden, D- Santa Monica, states in part, “no adoptable animal should be euthanized if it can be adopted into a suitable home.”   

One organization has alleged the county has the highest pet “kill rate” in the nation. In September, the board hired Austin, Texas-based Outcomes for Pets LLC Principal Adviser Kristen Hassen to rectify problems within the agency.

In February, the supervisors approved the Executive Office’s selection of Mary Martin to head the department following a nationwide executive recruitment drive. Martin, who most recently served as assistant director for Dallas Animal Services of Texas, officially started her new job at the end ofMarch.

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Garrett Hottle

A neighbor of Guy Edward Bartkus — the 25-year-old man identified by the FBI as the suspect in the deadly Palm Springs fertility clinic bombing — says they are “shocked” to learn explosives may have been assembled next door.

“He had an explosives laboratory in there, and although he built a pretty big bomb that he took down in Palm Springs, there is still enough material in there to do serious damage. That’s why it took almost three days for them to clear the area, because they had to be really careful. And so that’s pretty much what they told me,” said Thomas Bickel, a neighbor. 

Bartkus was killed in the blast early Saturday morning at the American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs, an explosion now investigators said was an act of intentional terrorism.

The FBI has identified Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, of 29 Palms as the primary suspect in the #PalmSprings vehicle explosion. The vehicle was a silver Ford Fusion sedan, plate 8HWS848. Please call 1800 CALLFBI with information or upload relevant video/images at https://t.co/CnxyRN1YIv pic.twitter.com/dYAG26xCYY

— FBI Los Angeles (@FBILosAngeles) May 18, 2025

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City News Service

AGUANGA, Calif. (KESQ) – Fire crews worked through the night hitting hotspots and improving control lines to contain 85% of a brush fire south of Highway 371 in Aguanga that has scorched 126 acres and destroyed one structure.  

The Crossing Fire was reported at 1:38 p.m. Tuesday in the area of Petes Crossing and Janell Drive, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

The agency said multiple engine and hand crews from the county, Hemet Fire Department, Riverside Fire Department and surrounding agencies were sent to the location, encountering flames moving at a moderate rate in light brush.   

One Hemet firefighter suffered heat exhaustion and was taken by ambulance to a regional trauma center for treatment. Temperatures in the Anza Valley Tuesday topped out in the low 90s.

One outbuilding in the fire’s path was destroyed, but no occupied properties were damaged or destroyed.   

At the fire’s peak, five Cal Fire air tankers and three water-dropping helicopters were making runs on the brusher as it pushed eastward. An evacuation order was issued for the dozen or fewer properties near Dove Drive and Gold Creek Lane.

The aircraft fire retardant and water drops had largely cut off the fire’s prospective fuel, enabling ground crews to establish tentative containment lines, relying on dirt roads to fortify defensive space, according to officials at the scene.   

The fire’s rate of spread was halted at 5:02 p.m. Tuesday.  

Minutes later, all fixed-wing aircraft departed the location. Several helicopters remained for targeted drops on hot spots threatening to jump containment lines.

The flames were 40% contained by 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, and working through the night, fire crews were able to bring containment up to 85% by 8 a.m. Wednesday.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

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City News Service

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – The Board of Supervisors today authorized Riverside County Fire Department Chief Bill Weiser to close access to multiple outdoor recreational locations for the duration of Southern California’s wildfire season to minimize public safety risks.

Since 2007, the agency has sought and received authorization to close designated grounds — located mainly in the central and southwest portions of the county — typically from June to November.   

Weiser intends to implement the closures on June 15.   

“Due to the potential for large damaging human-caused fires, the county fire chief has determined these areas should be closed, except on public roadways and on inhabited areas of private property within the closure areas,” according to a fire department statement. “The potential for large damaging fires this year may be enhanced by the extreme vegetation growth experienced throughout Riverside County.”  

Though precipitation totals from last winter were well blow average, there was growth after several storms in March and April, and that vegetation has already gone brittle and brown across large swaths of the inland region.   

Wildfires in any of the locations slated for closure would be difficult to manage, given their terrain and remoteness, officials said.   

The following sites fall under the closure order:   — Bautista Canyon, southeast of Hemet;   — Eagle Canyon, between Lake Mathews and the county landfill, just north of Cajalco Road;   — Indian Canyon and North Mountain, around San Jacinto;   — the Ramona Bowl, south of Hemet;   — Steel Peek, northwest of Meadowbrook, due west of Good Hope and south of Gavilan Hills; and   — Whitewater Canyon, near Cabazon.  

Officials noted the Ramona Bowl will remain accessible between sunrise and noon daily, with the area off-limits any other time of day.   

By reducing foot and off-road vehicle traffic in each location, the chances of a wildfire starting are much slimmer, according to the fire department.

Closure signs will be posted at entry points to warn potential violators of fines and other penalties. First offenses usually result in a minimum $100 ticket.

Residents will be permitted to come and go as they please.   

The closures are usually lifted at year’s end but can be rescinded before then by the chief, depending on the timing of winter rains.

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