EOD: Palm Canyon Theater Summer Kids Camp
Haley Meberg
Rep. Calvert announces 2025 Military Academy Appointments
Kailey Diaz
WASHINGTON, D.C (KESQ) – U.S Representative, Ken Calvert, has officially nominated the group of candidates to be admitted into the United States Service Academies.
Young SoCal candidates have received and accepted appointments to the Class of 2029 US Air Force Academy, U.S Naval Academy, and U.S Military Academy. Those appointed will secure an education valued in excess of $400,000. Congressman Calvert determines the candidates using his Congressional Nominations Selection Committee where the high school students and graduates’ achievements are evaluated. These achievements are scored through their academic and athletic performance as well as their motivation and leadership potential.
Calvert congratulated the candidates earlier today. “I want to congratulate the outstanding students from the 41st Congressional District,” said Rep. Calvert. “Nominating extraordinary students from our region to attend the academies is one of the highest honors I’m afforded as U.S Representative… Our volunteer military is shaped by selfless citizens stepping forward to serve, and I’m humbled by the leadership demonstrated by these students at such a young age.”
A Coachella Valley local, Aidan Forehand, from Xavier College Preparatory in Palm Desert has been admitted to U.S. Air Force Academy Preparatory School. The Preparatory School is a 10-month active-duty training program that will further emphasize the necessary qualifications to be officially appointed to the Air Force Academy.
The list of the candidates and their respective academies are as follows:
Air Force Academy
Alexander Apotrosoaei – John F. Kennedy High School
Daniel Frumusanu – Norco High School
Cade Paterson – Centennial High School
Aidan Forehand – Xavier College Preparatory (Class of 2024), Air Force Preparatory School
United States Naval Academy
Carlos Barrientos – Santiago High School (Class of 2024), University of California San Diego
Nathanael Burns – Murrieta Mesa High School (Class of 2024), Northwestern Preparatory School
Soren Harris-Pham – John W. North High School
Makayla Hudson – Arlington High School (Class of 2024), Naval Academy Preparatory School
Military Academy at West Point
Nathaniel De La Cruz – Fountain Valley High School
Brooke Desteuben – Norco High School (Class of 2024), Military Preparatory School
David Madera – Norco High School
CVUSD board trustee Sylvia Paz resigns from position
Jesus Reyes
THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ) – Sylvia Paz stepped down from her position as trustee of the Coachella Valley Unified School District.
The move went into effect on June 17, the district announced on Friday. Paz said she is resigning to begin a “long-planned sabbatical.”
Paz spent seven years on the board. District officials said she leaves behind a legally of leadership, advocacy and unwavering commitment to educational equity and student success.
There was no immediate word on when the trustee seat will be filled.
Stay with News Channel 3for updates.
Felon who assaulted fellow inmate at Indio jail for refusing to smuggle drugs sentenced
City News Service
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A felon who seriously assaulted and threatened the life of a fellow inmate at a Riverside County jail because the woman refused to smuggle drugs into the facility was sentenced today to seven years, eight months in state prison.
A Riverside jury in April convicted 35-year-old Cassandra Othelia Hoskins of assault with a deadly weapon, as well as one count each of sexual penetration with a foreign object, sexual assault on an unconscious person, making criminal threats and non-felonious assault.
During a hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Sam Shouka imposed the sentence prescribed by law for the offenses.
Hoskins’ co-defendants, 41-year-old June Alejo and 61-year-old Tamra Elayne Chavez, reached plea deals prior to the start of trial in March. Alejo admitted assault resulting in great bodily injury, and Chavez pleaded no contest to the same charge.
Alejo was sentenced in April to three years in prison. Chavez, who is being held in lieu of $145,000 bail at an out-of-state correctional facility, is due for sentencing on June 27.
The case goes back to 2017, when Hoskins was housed at the former Indio Jail, later shuttered after completion of the Benoit Detention Center.
According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney’s Office, Hoskins, who went by the moniker “Tank Boss,” oversaw a drug smuggling ring, involving heroin and other narcotics. One of her tactics was to arrange with contacts on the outside to hide drugs in locations where inmates could access them, including JFK Memorial Hospital in Indio, to which injured inmates were taken for treatment.
The female detainees would procure the contraband, conceal it, and return to jail with the packets without being screened by staff, enabling Hoskins to acquire the drugs for distribution and sale, according to the brief.
On Oct. 9, 2017, the defendant approached an inmate identified only as “Jane Doe” to make a hospital run to procure narcotics hidden in a bathroom stall. The victim, out of fear, accepted and allowed Hoskins to slice the top of her head with a razor, making it appear as if she had been injured falling out of her upper bunk bed, court papers said.
The victim went to the hospital for treatment and found the drugs but panicked, flushing the contraband down the toilet instead of concealing it for movement to the jail.
“When she returned from the hospital two days later, on Oct. 11, Jane Doe told Hoskins she couldn’t do it, referring to bringing the drugs back from the hospital,” the brief stated. “Later in the day, Hoskins confronted Jane Doe about the drugs. Hoskins indicated she spoke to her sister, who had confirmed the drugs had been placed in the bathroom prior to Jane Doe’s arrival there.”
The confrontation ended without a physical clash, but the next day, Chavez sought out Jane Doe, telling her to meet Hoskins in the showers of Housing Unit 11. The woman went and encountered an “angry” Hoskins, who “picked Jane Doe up with both hands by the throat and slammed her head against the shower wall, causing her to lose consciousness,” the prosecution said.
When the victim came to, she found her pants pulled down below her knees and Hoskins “digging through her vagina with a plastic spoon,” apparently convinced the woman had been lying and returned to jail with the drugs for herself, according to the brief.
When the victim was able to wriggle free and get back to her feet, Alejo entered and, at Hoskins’ direction, started punching Jane Doe in the head. The beating ended after a minute, and Alejo then went to the victim’s jail cell and threw her belongings into a corridor, the brief said.
“Hoskins then told Jane Doe that she was going to find her and kill her wherever she went,” court papers said. “Hoskins said she would find Jane Doe’s children, kill them and skin their heads if Hoskins’ house got raided by law enforcement.”
Deputies intervened and took the victim to the hospital, where doctors confirmed injuries consistent with an assault on her privates and head.
Court records show Hoskins has a range of convictions going back to 2008, including for assault and drug smuggling.
Yucca Valley unveils Founder Plaza in Old Town
Zachariah Perez
YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – Yucca Valley announced the new opening of its Founders Plaza. Town officials touted it as a “significant milestone in the town’s ongoing efforts.”
Earlier this month, council members held a small ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the project.
Officials are set to plan a larger community celebration later this year to allow residents and visitors to mark the official opening of the plaza’s new community gathering space later this year.
“This project is just the beginning.” Said Mayor Jeff Drozd. “Founders Plaza reflects our community’s past while creating a space for connection, events and future growth in Old Town. We’re excited for residents to start using the space and looking forward to the grand opening later this year.”
Formerly known as “Old Town Beautification and Sustainability Project,” the space is now renamed Founders Plaza following a community-wide naming campaign. Which is located along the Elk Trail between Twentynine Palms Highway and Yucca Trail. Founders Plaza will represent its first completion phase of a broader initiative to enhance Old Town’s walkability, visual appeal and more.
While the plaza is already being enjoyed by the public, additional improvements are still planned ahead as funding becomes available.
For more information on the founders Plaza and future project phase, visit https://www.yucca-valley.org/our-town/departments/public-works-engineering/old-town-project
Stay up to date with KESQ News Channel 3 for the latest information on this project.
Jobless rate unchanged in Riverside County
City News Service
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – Modest gains offset minor losses across the regional economy, leaving Riverside County’s unemployment rate unchanged last month, according to figures released today by the California Employment Development Department.
The countywide jobless rate in May, based on preliminary EDD estimates, was 4.9%, equaling the rate published in April.
According to figures, the May rate was four-tenths of a percentage point higher than the year-ago level, when countywide unemployment then stood at 4.5%.
The combined unemployment rate for Riverside and San Bernardino counties — the Inland Empire — was 4.8%, down from 4.9% in April, the EDD said.
Data showed Cherry Valley had the highest unemployment rate countywide in May at 10.2%, followed by Coachella at 8%, Rancho Mirage at 7.9%, Banning at 6.6% and Hemet at 6.5%.
Bi-county data indicated that payrolls increased by the widest margin last month in the agricultural sector, which added 1,500 positions.
Further gains were recorded in the construction, hospitality, information technology, professional business services and public sectors, which expanded by a total 3,100 jobs, while miscellaneous unclassified industries added another 400, according to figures.
The only sector drop identified in May was in the trade, transportation and utilities sector, which shed an estimated 400 jobs, according to the EDD.
The financial services, health services, mining and manufacturing sectors were unchanged.
The statewide non-seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in May was 4.9%.
Pair accused of hit-and-run targeting Riverside demonstrators due in court
City News Service
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A 58-year-old convicted felon accused of intentionally driving into a crowd of protesters marching along a downtown Riverside street, seriously injuring one of them, is slated to make his initial court appearance today, along with his girlfriend.
Russell Alan Prentice and 39-year-old Candase Wenzel, both of Riverside, were arrested Monday following a Riverside Police Department investigation that began Saturday night.
Prentice is charged with assault using a deadly weapon, hit-and-run resulting in great bodily injury and being a two-strike felon. Wenzel is charged with being an accessory after the fact.
Both defendants are being held at the Robert Presley Jail — Prentice in lieu of $1 million bail, Wenzel on $625,000 bail.
“From the officers in the field that night to our detectives who immediately launched the investigation, along with support from our Crime Analysis Unit, this case was solved quickly thanks to their combined efforts,” police Chief Larry Gonzalez said Tuesday. “Equally important were the tips we received from our community, and we’re grateful for the information they provided.”
Prentice was driving his SUV in the area of University Avenue and Orange Street shortly after 9 p.m. Saturday when he encountered marchers taking part in one of the many “No Kings” rallies that occurred nationwide. The organized events drew a variety of interests to denounce the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement actions and other policies, timed to coincide with the 47th president’s birthday.
Police spokesman Officer Ryan Railsback alleged that Prentice floored his SUV, aiming directly for a number of demonstrators making their way along University, between Orange and Main streets. A young woman was unable to jump out of the vehicle’s path and was struck.
“The SUV then fled the scene,” the police spokesman said.
The victim was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where she remained in critical but stable condition on Thursday.
“Officers found the suspect vehicle’s license plate number, and detectives from the Robbery-Homicide Unit began their investigation and subsequently identified the suspect driver,” Railsback said.
A search warrant was served at Prentice’s residence on Jackson Street Monday afternoon. The defendant was taken into custody without incident.
“Detectives also arrested Wenzel … for her role in taking the suspect vehicle to Phelan, intentionally destroying and concealing evidence,” Railsback said.
She was taken into custody at the same time and place as Prentice.
He has documented prior felony convictions in another jurisdiction that weren’t listed in court records. Wenzel has no documented prior felonies.
Experts discuss mental health following possible termination of LGBTQ+ youth suicide lifeline
Kendall Flynn
THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – The Trevor Project received official notice June 17 of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration initiating the closure of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services program.
The termination could be effective for July 17, 2025, if passed by Congress. The Trevor Project is one of seven centers that currently make up the LGBTQ+ Youth Subnetwork. The program allows callers to “press 3” or “rely PRIDE” to be connected with counselors trained specifically to assist LGBTQ+ contacts.
The service reports in 2024 it directly served more than 231,000 crisis contacts and previously, with the LGBTQ+ Youth Subnetwork, received up to $50 million in restricted federal funds for the lifeline services.
In the projects press release, CEO Jaymes Black said “This is devastating, to say the least. Suicide prevention is about people, not politics. The administration’s decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible.”
Stay with News Channel 3 to hear from mental health experts from the Hazelden Betty Ford Center and The LGBTQ+ Center on the the impacts of this potential termination.
Appreciation BBQ honors PS Police, Fire Dept. for bravery and dedication
Luis Avila
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A private appreciation BBQ was held Friday to honor members of the Palms Springs Police and Fire Departments for their service and courage, following last months fertility clinic bombing. The event was put together by the Hispanic-American Chamber of commerce in partnership with other groups.
“We are so honored so happy to feed these guys because they’re the ones who work 24 hours a day to keeping security and safety.”
Rafael Oscal, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce president
Local leaders and community members rolled up their sleeves to serve first responders.
“I traded in my suit for some gloves and just wanted to give back. My role is just to be a community member and show love to the men and women who constantly go into the line of fire.”
Jeff Gonzalez, 36th Assembly District assembly member
Our local heros share what this means for them.
“Honestly, it’s overwhelming. We’re so lucky. This city is something else, special. We have people like David who reach out to us… we work together as a team.”
Michael Torres, PSPD Lieutenant
“To have other people serve us, it feels good… This community has always stepped up and given back. Not only do they give it to us but they give it to everyone impacted. Especially with this bombing, the way it came together.”
Jeff Van Lierop, PSFD Deputy Chief
The gratitude didn’t end there. Organizers were also recognized by locals leaders for their work and dedication. For volunteers, many of whom were directly affected by the bomb, this was about healing too.
“It’s the least we can do to give back to our first responders. They were there within minutes during the bombing and we appreciate the personal touch even Michael calling us and making sure that we’re ok.”
David Rios, Velvet Rope Hotel owner
Stay with News Channel 3 for more.