Author: KESQ

Jesus Reyes

Update 6/16/25

The suspect was released on $200,000 bail Sunday, according to jail records.

Edward Miranda is scheduled to appear in court on July 18.

Original Report 6/14/25

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A La Quinta man was arrested after allegedly making an online post threatening a shooting at the “No Kings Day” protest in Palm Springs being held Saturday evening.

Edward Miranda, 28, was arrested Friday night in La Quinta, according to county jail records. He remains in custody on $100,000 bail and faces charges of criminal threats and threats to interfere with civil rights.

Palm Springs police said officers became aware of the online post Friday afternoon and “promptly responded to concerns raised by the community.” PSPD worked with the FBI to identify Miranda as the suspect.

During the investigation, PSPD served one search warrant at a residence in Riverside County and one search warrant at a residence in San Bernardino County, resulting in the seizure of one firearm belonging to the suspect.

“We take all threats to public safety seriously and will vigorously pursue those intent on committing violence in our community,” said PSPD Chief Andrew Mills. “Thanks to the vigilance of a community member who saw something and said something, along with the tireless efforts of our PSPD detectives and FBI partners, we were able to identify and apprehend the suspect, ensuring the safety of tonight’s event.”

PSPD said there will be a heavy police presence at tonight’s rally to ensure the rally remains safe.

The rally will be held in the Downtown Park on Saturday from 6 pm to 8 pm. Similar protests were also held Saturday morning in Rancho Mirage an Cathedral City

The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with additional information is urged to contact PSPD at (760) 327-1441 or submit tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (760) 341-7867.

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Tori King

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — A Flag Day event is set to kick off in Palm Springs on Saturday.

‘The Flags of Prayer Project’ is a heart-centered, worldwide action within which people or groups of people compose prayers, then create flags displaying them.

According to the project, the flags are strung together and hung outdoors where they can be seen and the wind can catch them, inspiring unity and hope and spreading their message. The flags are hung and or consecrated on the US holiday of Flag Day, which is June 14th.

The event will take place at the Center for Spiritual Living at 2100 E Racquet Club Rd, Palm Springs.

This Flag Day, flags from the local community are being hung over the labyrinth at the front of the Center, and will be consecrated in a ceremony beginning at 10:00 a.m.

There will be several speakers offering blessings, and a choral performance of the Flags of Prayer song. Beyond the Center for Spiritual Living in Palm Springs, the Flags of Prayer Project has been undertaken by several other spiritual centers, churches, families, and individuals.

For more details, visit flagsofprayer.org.

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Jesus Reyes

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – As the high season comes to an end and as food prices continue to surge across the country, FIND food bank is experiencing a higher need of both food donations and volunteers during the summer months.

Telemundo 15 anchor Hernan Quintas explains the different ways that you can support our local food bank and our community.

For more information, including how to donate or volunteer, visit findfoodbank.org/

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City News Service

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A pool serviceman who fatally beat a 93-year-old Palm Desert woman while trying to steal from her was sentenced today to 19 years to life in state prison.

An Indio jury in April convicted Benjamin Cabrera Briones, 62, of Thousand Palms of second-degree murder, as well as burglary and forgery, for the 2021 slaying of Jean Grace Willrich.

During a hearing at the Larson Justice Center in Indio Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Anthony Villalobos imposed the sentence required under state law for the crimes.

“She suffered massive blunt force trauma to her face,” Deputy District Attorney Hawlee Valente told jurors at the close of the trial. “He beat her, bludgeoned her repeatedly. He applied all of his body weight on her collar bone. That’s intent to kill.”   

Briones, who was both a pool serviceman and general handyman, had gone to the residence on the pretext of fixing a toilet. The prosecution, however, argued that his real motivation was theft.

“He intended to defraud, and the victim was an easy target,” Valente said.

On the morning of Nov. 29, 2021, the defendant arrived in his work truck clearly marked “Briones Pools” at the victim’s house in the 77000 block of Michigan Drive and remained for almost exactly 50 minutes — a time frame that sheriff’s detectives were able to confirm relying on tape from security surveillance video cameras at neighbors’ properties, according to the prosecution.

Valente said he wore latex gloves during and after the murder.   

After leaving the property, Briones drove to an ATM outside an Albertson’s supermarket and deposited one of her checks into his business account, according to the prosecution.

Deputy Public Defender Richard Verlato asserted Briones did not have an intent to kill when he arrived at the home — to which he’d been invited — but in the course of speaking with Willrich, “he freaked out,” causing him to lose control and fatally assault the woman, for whom he had once worked maintaining her pool until she fired him over a payment dispute.   

On Nov. 30, 2021, a concerned friend, Patricia McDonald, went to the victim’s house and used a spare key to enter, finding Willrich “laying in a puddle of dried blood, her face swollen,” according to trial testimony.   

Sheriff’s Investigator Gustavo Castaneda testified that during an interview with Briones, the defendant admitted turning hostile when Willrich started questioning why he was walking around her home and not fixing the toilet.

“That’s when he proceeded to assault her,” Castaneda said. “Mr. Briones explained to us how he punched her, choked her and eventually got on top of her. He continued to punch her, hit her with both open and closed fists because she wouldn’t stop screaming. When she stopped moving, he got up, grabbed (her) checks and left.”  

Valente said after a search warrant was executed at the defendant’s residence, blood-stained shoes, a shirt, pants and other items of evidentiary value were seized. A notepad bearing names and addresses was also located, and “Willrich’s name and address were the only ones crossed out,” the deputy district attorney said.   

Briones was arrested without incident on Dec. 3, 2021, during a traffic stop near Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra drives in Rancho Mirage.   

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

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City News Service

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A convicted felon who choked his girlfriend to death during a domestic conflict in the parking lot of an Indio condominium complex was sentenced today to 15 years to life in state prison.

An Indio jury in April convicted 44-year-old Eduardo Alvarez of the 2020 slaying of 32-year-old Madeleine Gutierrez of Indio.   

During a hearing at the Larson Justice Center Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Otis Sterling imposed the sentence required under state law for the crime.

According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney’s Office, Alvarez and Gutierrez were in a tumultuous relationship that started in 2018. Their final conflict happened in the predawn hours of Oct. 17, 2020, when the victim called 911 after an argument outside the Encanto Apartments in the 46-700 block of Clinton Street.   

Prosecutors said Indio police officers arrived shortly before 4 a.m. and found Gutierrez standing with a building security guard, complaining that Alvarez had forcibly taken her car keys.

When officers asked whether she wanted to leave in her vehicle while Alvarez remained behind for her safety, the woman said no, instead telling the policemen she preferred the defendant stay with her. The two then left in her hatchback.

A little over an hour later, Alvarez called 911, claiming he and his girlfriend had just been attacked in the parking lot of the Summer Breeze Condos in the 47-300 block of Monroe Street and that he was passing out, prosecutors said.

When police reached the location, they discovered the defendant in a fetal position, laying next to Gutierrez, who was unconscious, on her back in front of her vehicle, arms outstretched at her sides and exhibiting “facial injuries and some marks around her neck,” the brief stated.   

Paramedics pronounced her dead 20 minutes later. The cause of death was determined to be manual strangulation.   

Gutierrez “feigned unconsciousness” as he lay in the parking lot, betraying his alertness by forcing his eyes shut while paramedics checked him for injuries. He had minor swelling on the left side of his forehead, but “no other obvious signs of trauma,” court papers said.

He was examined at a hospital, then cleared to leave with detectives, who questioned him at length. When asked about the circumstances of Gutierrez’s death, Alvarez gave different accounts of what transpired.   

He told investigators initially that he and Gutierrez had been out most of the night, going to places in Desert Hot Springs and Palm Springs before heading over to the Encanto Apartments, where his niece resided. He said there had been a minor tiff that prompted Gutierrez to get angry and try to “run him over,” but that it was a “playful” stunt. He told detectives he took her keys from her as a precaution, according to the brief.   

The defendant said they then drove to his residence and parked outside. In one version of events, Alvarez indicated the two were talking next to her car when a pair of unknown men approached and shouted “Where you from?” A tussle ensued, and Alvarez said he was punched in the head and fell to the ground, at which point the men turned their attention to Gutierrez, who struggled with them before she was knocked unconscious, court papers said.   

In another version, Alvarez said he and Gutierrez were enjoying a romantic moment in the open rear of her car when the two men accosted them, grabbed Alvarez by his feet and pulled him out of the car, causing his head to hit the pavement and stun him. He said Gutierrez fought with the men, but couldn’t recall any other details.   

Detectives picked out inconsistencies, including signs that Gutierrez had been dragged through a field, with dirt and grass in her hair and clothes, prompting Gutierrez to start yawning, remarking, “I need a lawyer,” ending the police interview, the prosecution said.

He had documented prior felony and misdemeanor convictions for domestic violence, resisting arrest, assault and violating a restraining order.   

His ex-wife, identified only as “E.L.,” divorced him after he choked her into unconsciousness in front of their children, documents stated. The defendant also admitted choking a fellow inmate in their jail cell.

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Athena Jreij

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) — As Israel and Iran exchange missiles tonight, local Jewish community members are feeling the weight of the conflict.

“They don’t seem to be able to resolve any of it. I mean, we’re on the brink of all out war,” Marlene Lynn said.

It comes as several local Jewish community members are on a trip in Tel Aviv, and are now spending the night in a bomb shelter.

“They were looking forward to being at Tel Aviv Pride today and it got canceled. They’re getting a dose of what it’s like to be an Israeli and living there where you have a safe room in every apartment,” Rabbi David Novak said.

For some, their frustrations are mounting as Israel is already battling Hamas, with dozens of hostages still in Gaza and over 50,000 Palestinians killed.

“Right now there’s 53 hostages and we think about 23 of them are still alive. I hope that they’re not forgotten while Israel is going after the Iranian nuclear capability,” Rabbi Novak said.

“What has happened with Hamas in Gaza is horrifying beyond words. We don’t see a close end to that in sight,” Rob Bergstein said.

The war on both fronts is a painful reminder for some of the worst parts of history.

“The Holocaust happened so I know it can happen again and the scariest part is it can happen here. Look at all the anti-Semitism that’s going on here in the United States,” Lynn said.

“Our go to is often feeling kind of a knee jerk reaction about, ‘oh, my God, it’s happening again.’ But, I hope that we can look past that and look at peacekeeping efforts,” Adina Lawson said.

As congregation members ring in Shabbat, some say they’ll be leaning on their faith.

“No matter what is happening in the world, if I can come in to Friday night services, I am comforted, and I can go back out into the world,” Bergstein said.

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Jesus Reyes

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A Desert Hot Springs man convicted of killing his girlfriend’s lover was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

Jose Ernesto Martinez, 32, was found guilty of first-degree murder in April 2025.

Martinez was arrested June 26, 2021, on suspicion of gunning down then-27-year-old Isaac Valles of Rancho Mirage earlier that morning. He allegedly killed Valles at the conclusion of a domestic dispute, according to the Cathedral City Police Department, which did not elaborate on the nature of the argument.  

Officers sent to the 31800 block of Neuma Drive about 2:40 a.m. that day found the victim lying in the roadway, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, police said.

Despite first responders’ attempts to revive him, Valles was pronounced dead at the scene.

Detectives collected “ample witness statements and crime scene evidence” that pointed to Martinez as the suspect, according to the department. He was arrested in Desert Hot Springs about two hours after police initially arrived on scene, jail records show.

He had no documented felony convictions in Riverside County at the time.

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KESQ News Team

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians is opening a new exhibition, Section 14 The Untold Story, on June 14, 2025, at the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. The exhibition sheds light on the complex and often painful history of Section 14, a square mile of reservation land at the heart of Palm Springs.

The exhibition centers around a 16-minute documentary film featuring personal stories from Tribal Elders who lived on Section 14. Their testimonies recall life in the community and the injustices faced by Tribal families. The surrounding gallery offers an array of historical documents and archival evidence that illustrate efforts by private and governmental entities to displace the Agua Caliente people, as well as the Tribe’s enduring fight to reclaim its rights and preserve its culture.

Section 14 The Untold Story not only highlights the struggles endured by the Tribe but also offers a powerful narrative of resilience, cultural identity, and sovereignty. For tribal members, it’s a step in ensuring that the story of Section 14 is told from the perspective of those who lived it.

Museum Details:Agua Caliente Cultural Museum140 N. Indian Canyon Drive, Palm SpringsOpen Tuesday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. (Closed Mondays)Admission includes access to the Changing GalleryMore info: accmuseum.org/tickets

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Kendall Flynn

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — The United States Postal Service is raising awareness through the month of June about dog bites. This comes after the USPS 2024 report found over 770 postal carriers in California were bit by dogs. 

Officials said this ranks California at the top of the nation for carrier dog bites — something they want to improve by spreading awareness and telling owners steps they can take.

Palm Springs native and local Letter Carrier Angelita Ordonez was once chased by a dog during her usual route through the city. She said since then, she’s been more aware of dogs in neighborhoods, but she still hopes the community will help the issue.

“Keep your dogs inside behind the yard,” Ordonez said. “If we’re coming to the door, of course we ring the doorbell, we want to make sure that dog is put away in another room – you never know it might attack.”

All carriers with USPS are trained on dealing with potentially dangerous dogs with a scanner, dog repellant spray and taught to use their mail satchel for protection.

USPS officials report the mail carriers are trained to:

Make a non-threatening noise or rattle a fence to alert a dog if entering a yard;

Never startle a dog;

Keep their eyes on any dog;

Never assume a dog will not bite;

Never attempt to pet or feed a dog; and

Place their foot against an outward swinging door to prevent a dog from escaping.

But they also say there are steps owners can take to prevent the situation from happening in the first place, and some local pet owners agree even if their dogs like the mail carriers.

“I think it needs to be addressed for the mail guys because I’m sure it can be really hard on them,” Silke Bayer said. “But on the other side they’re like my dog. She really loves to meet them and see them. ”

“I always think there should be a barrier between a dog and whomever you know a leash…you don’t know how the dogs can react to the human,” Jesse Sandoval said. “Your neighbor represents you [and] you represent your neighbor. So if you’re a true community, you should be considerate of that.”

Stay with News Channel 3 to hear Ordonez’s story and from local pet owners on the awareness month and its impact on local carriers.

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City News Service

LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – With a court decision pending on the fate of National Guard troops deployed in the city, roughly 200 U.S. Marines moved into downtown Los Angeles today to protect federal buildings amid continuing protests over ongoing immigration raids in the Southland.

Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, commander of Task Force 51 — the contingent of 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines from Twentynine Palms ordered to deploy to the city by President Donald Trump — said 200 Marines will take their positions starting at noon Friday protecting the federal building downtown. The move will free up National Guard troops — who have been primarily protecting federal property over the past week of unrest — to serving a more protective role for federal agents conduction enforcement operations in the field.   

“I would like to emphasize that the soldiers will not participate in law enforcement activities,” Sherman told reporters during a morning briefing. “Rather, they’ll be focused on protecting federal law enforcement personnel.”  

Sherman said some National Guard troops have already been doing protective work for federal agents conducting immigration enforcement activities, but they have not engaged in any police-type work or made any arrests or detentions.

The arrival of the Marines comes one day after a federal judge in Northern California ordered Trump to return control of the California National Guard to Gov. Gavin Newsom. Trump federalized 2,000 National Guard troops last weekend as nightly protests were held in downtown Los Angeles in response to raids being carried out by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump later added another 2,000 troops to the order.   

Newsom and other local leaders vehemently objected to the troop deployment, arguing it was unnecessary and would heighten tensions and potentially lead to more violent protests.  

In Thursday’s ruling, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco wrote that Trump’s actions federalizing National Guard troops — who are normally under the control of the governor — did not follow congressionally mandated procedure.

“His actions were illegal — both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution,” the judge wrote. “He must therefore return control of theCalifornia National Guard to the Governor of the State of California forthwith.”  

Hours later, Breyer’s ruling was stayed by a three-judge appellate panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in response to a Trump administration notice of appeal, temporarily keeping the National Guard troops under federal control pending another hearing on Tuesday.

Earlier Thursday, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem held an eventful news conference in Los Angeles to discuss ongoing ICE operations in the Southland. She declared, “We are not going away,” moments before Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, was forcibly removed from the news conference, forced onto a hallway floor and placed in handcuffs.   

The rough treatment of Padilla was widely condemned, including by Newsom, who called it “outrageous, dictatorial and shameful,” and by Mayor Karen Bass, who labeled it “absolutely abhorrent and outrageous.”   

Thursday’s dramatic events came as tensions sparked by immigration enforcement and the resulting protests in the L.A. area remained heightened — with a dusk-to-dawn downtown curfew still in effect, leading to a reduction in confrontations with police — though arrests continued to mount.

The curfew affects a roughly one-square-mile area of downtown from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly. The curfew applies to an area between the Golden State (5) and Harbor (110) freeways, and from the Santa Monica (10) Freeway to where the Arroyo Seco (110) Parkway and Golden State Freeway merge. That area includes Skid Row, Chinatown, and the Arts and Fashion districts.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, 13 people were arrested Thursday night into Friday morning for curfew violations. Another 33 people were arrested overnight for failure to disperse, while one was arrested for allegedly resisting a police officer and one for aiming a laser pointer at a police helicopter. One person detained for a curfew violation was arrested for an outstanding robbery warrant, police said.   

While most of the protests have been concentrated near the federal Metropolitan Detention Center downtown and the nearby federal building and City Hall, smaller, scattered protests were held this week at the DoubleTree Hotel in Whittier, the Westin Hotel in Pasadena and the Embassy Suites Hotel in Downey, where demonstrators believed federal ICE agents were staying.

Protests have been occurring daily in the area since Friday, when ICE agents carried out a series of immigration enforcement raids, detaining dozens of people.

Prior to the curfew, the nightly protests often devolved into violence, with some demonstrators hurling objects or fireworks at police, who often responded by firing non-lethal weapons or tear gas.

Bass and community leaders took issue Thursday with suggestions by Trump and others that the entire city was under a siege of violence necessitating deployment of the military, including the 4,000 federalized National Guard troops and 700 active-duty U.S. Marines.’

“To characterize what is going on in our city as a city of mayhem is just an outright lie,” Bass said at an afternoon news conference attended by dozens of local faith and community leaders.

The mayor pointed to comments made by Noem Thursday morning that described the city as a “war zone.”   

“There’s no one up here that sees Los Angeles like that,” Bass said. “This is not all of Los Angeles. This is isolated to a few blocks in a city that is 500 square miles. And out of those 500 square miles, the protests — and especially the protests that devolved into violence — represent half a square mile.”   

Bass said the raids were spreading fear in the community, preventing some people from going to work or school. She said some raids that occurred Thursday took place at “emergency rooms and homeless shelters.”   

And she again repeated her assertion that protests in the city would stop immediately if federal immigration authorities discontinued enforcement raids.

“We want peace to come to our city,” Bass said, adding that such an action “needs to begin in Washington, and we need to stop the raids.”  

Noem said the enforcement operations were targeting violent criminals. During her news conference, photos of criminals detained during the Southland operations were shown on video screens.

“We are not going away. We are staying here to liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this governor (Newsom) and that this mayor (Bass) placed on this country and what they have tried to insert into this city,” Noem said, referring to the state and city’s so-called “sanctuary” policies, which prohibit the use of state and local resources and personnel for federal immigration enforcement.   

Los Angeles and other cities across the Southland and the country are expected to see large-scale “No Kings” protests on Saturday held in conjunction with a U.S. military parade scheduled in Washington, D.C. The parade ostensibly will celebrate the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary, but it also falls on Trump’s 79th birthday.   

Law enforcement agencies across the region are likely to be on heightened alert due to the planned protests, including a large-scale gathering expected outside Los Angeles City Hall. National Guard troops and Marines will also likely be in place, continuing their mission of protecting federal facilities, thanks to the federal appeals court ruling Thursday night.   

The court action stemmed from a lawsuit brought late Monday by Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta following Trump’s escalation of military forces in the Los Angeles area.

In his initial ruling Thursday evening, Breyer said the issue is “the president exercising his authority, and the president is, of course, limited. That’s the difference between a constitutional government and King George.”   

The judge indicated Trump’s deployment of 4,000 members of California’s National Guard to the streets of Los Angeles — over Newsom’s strenuous objections — was legally deficient. The judge also was dubious about Trump’s insistence that the unrest in Los Angeles posed a “danger of rebellion.”  

The judge said Trump did not appear to have met a legal requirement that such orders must pass through the governor of the state involved.   

Breyer declined to rule on Newsom’s request to block the call-up of 700 active-duty Marines to Los Angeles, saying any action from the bench seemed premature because the troops haven’t arrived in the city.

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