Cynthia White
COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – As we honor the men and women who have protected and served our country on Veterans Day, News Channel 3 is celebrating your heroes.
Thank you to our viewers for sharing wonderful photos of the veterans in your lives – family, friends, neighbors and community members who have proudly worn the uniform.
Cynthia White
INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – The City of Indio hosted its 2nd annual Veterans Day 5k Run/Walk at the Empire Polo Grounds on Tuesday in recognition of those who served our country.
The event supported the Hunter Lopez Memorial Foundation and the American Legion Post 739.
Hunter Lopez and twelve fellow service members lost their lives at the August 2021 bombing attack at Kabul airport in Afghanistan.
Hunter’s father, Herman Lopez, said of the event and turnout, “It’s just a great reminder of the sacrifice that these young men and women went through at some point in their lives. It’s great to see veterans here of all different ages . . . to honor them, let them know that people remember what they’ve been through. There’s a lot of sacrifices that I think go unsaid and unrecognized. Not only by the veterans themselves but by their families, and you know, so much good has come out of today.”
Indio Mayor Glenn Miller said, “We thought about what we could do to help our veterans, help active duty military and those who might want to serve, and we decided to partner up with the Hunter Lopez Foundation and actually get a walk out so we can get a little bit of fitness in at the same time and raise some funds for veterans and other causes.”
Miller added that the event was sold out at 550 entrants, but more people showed up to participate. He expects next year’s event will reach up to 1,000 people taking part.
Shay Lawson
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – Thousands gathered in downtown Palm Springs for the 28th Annual Veterans Day Parade & Concert: Honoring All Who Serve.
Organizers say the parade is of the largest in Southern California.
It featured marching bands, veterans’ organizations, classic cars concluding with a patriotic concert by the 300th Army Reserve Band and a fireworks finale.
Dr. Stephan Scoggins, veteran, said seeing the community show up means so much.
“I’ve attended the parades for many years,” Scoggins said. “I love it. It’s a true fellowship. It’s family, and it’s absolutely a reminder to be grateful and appreciative of all of those who have served.”
Hear from more veterans and attendees in the full report at 10 and 11 p.m.
Garrett Hottle
PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) A new Veterans Day tradition rolled into the Coachella Valley this week as the parking lot outside Acrisure Arena transformed into a massive car-buying event complete with gratitude for those who’ve served.
The first-ever Acrisure Arena Auto Sale, running through Sunday, November 16, features hundreds of new and used vehicles from local dealerships, including Jessup Auto Plaza. Veterans and active-duty service members who stop by to test drive a vehicle are receiving free tickets to an upcoming Coachella Valley Firebirds home game.
“It’s just a small token of our appreciation,” said Daniel Jessup, CEO and General Manager of Jessup Auto Plaza. “If you’ve put on a uniform and served our country that’s all you need to do. Come down, see us, and we’ll give you a Firebirds ticket for tonight’s home game.”
Jessup, whose family business has been locally owned and veteran-run for three generations, says the event carries special meaning. “My grandfather was in the Navy, my father a Vietnam Air Force veteran, and my brother a Marine Corps captain. Supporting veterans has always been part of who we are,” he said.
Among those taking part were members of the Palm Springs Corvette Club many of whom are veterans themselves. Jack Carter, a Navy diver, said events like this show how much the valley values service. “It’s an honor to serve. And it means a lot to have the community behind us,” Carter said.
Fellow club member Bill Jahn added, “It just shows the community appreciates our service and we appreciate the recognition.”
The Acrisure Arena Auto Sale continues through Sunday, November 16, offering deals on hundreds of vehicles and special giveaways throughout Veterans Week.
KESQ News Team
DESERT HOT SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The city of Desert Hot Springs honored veterans with gratitude to the brave men and women who have served our country.
“I was wounded January 1st, 1968. I was blown out of the military 1113A1 track, blown into a tree out the back door,” said Eddie G. Johnson, a Vietnam Veteran, Purple Heart recipient, and caretaker of Veterans Park.
Johnson was presented with a plaque honoring his commitment to service even long after his military service.
“His lifelong commitment to service — both to his country and to our community — stands as an example of what it truly means to serve,” reads a post by the city.
The city’s event featured presentations, patriotic music, and community reflection.
City News Service
RIVERSIDE. Calif. (KESQ) – A registered sex offender accused of pimping out a teenager for call girl services in the Riverside metropolitan area and elsewhere will stand trial on felony charges.
Deirdrick Dayvon Bradford, 31, of Rosamond was arrested last month following a Riverside Police Department investigation stemming from an earlier FBI operation.
At the end of a preliminary hearing Monday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Joshlyn Pulliam found there was sufficient evidence to bound Bradford over for trial on charges of human trafficking, possession of child pornography and pimping of a minor. One related felony count was dismissed by the judge.
She scheduled a post-preliminary hearing arraignment for Nov. 25 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
Bradford is being held in lieu of $85,000 bail at the Benoit Detention Center in Indio.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit filed by the police department, the defendant met the 16-year-old victim allegedly coaxing her into working for him as a prostitute.
The alleged sex trafficking operation was uncovered during an FBI investigation that was turned over to the police department’s Vice Squad in August after agents confirmed the juvenile was from Riverside. By the time detectives interviewed her, she had been placed in a group home for troubled and runaway teens in the city, court papers stated.
“She admitted to being on escort websites, but claimed her mother posted the ads,” the affidavit said.
Her mobile phone was seized by court order, and a search revealed conversations allegedly involving the girl and a Snapchat user telling her “to send him money — $150,” and there were “screenshots (of him) managing the victim’s ads on Megapersonals, saying he would `bump’ or repost her ad for more visibility,” according to the warrant declaration.
Further investigation confirmed the girl’s images had been circulated on sex-oriented sites as enticements, including videos of her nude, touching her intimate parts, according to police.
Detectives ultimately confirmed Bradford was the youth’s alleged handler, and that he had been trafficking her in Riverside, Los Angeles and Phoenix, authorities said. In Riverside, the girl was situated near the Tyler Mall to allegedly perform sex services, police said.
The victim evidently tried to alert Bradford that police were onto him, advising via phone message to “delete your Snapchat … and ‘go ghost,'” according to the affidavit.
Coordinating with the U.S. Marshals, detectives tracked the defendant down in Phoenix on Oct. 24, where he was arrested without incident. He was immediately extradited to California.
According to the California Megan’s Law web portal, the defendant has a prior felony conviction for pimping a minor in 2015, requiring him to register as a sex offender under state Penal Code section 290.
Jesus Reyes
COACHELLA, Calif. (KESQ) – Loved ones are asking for the community’s help in finding a 13-year-old boy last seen in Coachella Sunday night.
Carlos Medina was last seen just before midnight on Nov. 9 near the 85000 block of Avenida Grace.
According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were told that Medina had left the location. Deputies searched the area but were unable to locate the boy.
“Based on the information provided, Medina was entered into the missing persons database as a runaway,” reads an email from RSO.
Medina is described as five feet, three inches tall, with brown hair and brown eyes. He has a scar near his right eye.
The investigation remain ongoing.
If you have any information, call his family at 442-306-1206 or the Thermal Sheriff’s Station at 760-863-8990
Kendall Flynn
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – It’s Veteran’s Day, and while the Valley is gearing up for a day of recognition, it’s also a time to acknowledge the mental health struggles local veterans face from their time in the military.
Veterans are 57% more at risk for suicide than non-military adults, and around 6,000 veterans die by suicide each year, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. There are nearly 1.6 million veterans in California alone, making the availability of mental health services in the Valley important.
Veterans commonly deal with mental health conditions like depression, PTSD, anxiety disorders, and substance use disorders (SUD).
But research shows seeking treatment is effective in reducing suicide rates heavily. From 2001 to 2022, the Veterans Health Administration saw long term decreasing trends for suicide rates across conditions including a 36.1% decrease from anxiety, 34.5% from depression and 31.6% from PTSD.
To reach out to American Legion Palm Springs Post 519 visit americanlegionpalmsprings.com
For more on veteran benefits and services in California visit calvet.ca.gov
Stay with News Channel 3 to hear from local veterans on mental health and resources available to them.
Gavin Nguyen
YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – Families in the High Desert are receiving assistance from a grassroots fundraiser called ‘The Desert Provides.’
According to organizers, many High Desert families are underserved. The lapses in funding to SNAP/EBT – also known as CalFresh in California – has created challenges for many of the community’s vulnerable residents.
That’s why, a couple of weeks ago, a chef in the Yucca Valley area, known as Chef V, called upon the community to rally to help. Together with other volunteers, the community raised hundreds of dollars in the form of Grocery Outlet gift cards for families in need.
“People need help. And I, as a mother and a chef, felt called to help out with the food insecurity in our area,” said Vavine Tahapehi, otherwise known as Chef V. She began organizing the project about one week ago, and since then, generous donors have pooled together roughly $1,300.
That money went towards about a dozen gift cards – most of which have already been distributed to families in need.
The Flamingo Heights Community Center is the spot where organizers are distributing the gift cards. V acknowledged many families in the High Desert don’t have access to a car, making it difficult to pick up the gift cards; as a result, three other volunteers have stepped up to deliver the gift cards, too.
The president of the community center, Justin Merino, affirmed, “As long as the need exist and folks continue to donate, we’ll continue to distribute the cards.”
Ashley Flores, a single mother of two young boys, was one of the recipients of the assistance. She regularly receives $700 in CalFresh benefits, but when the government shutdown impacted that supplement, she said her anxiety grew.
“Having to determine whether I have enough cash to cover that or whether there’s enough money in savings, do I pay some bills and not others?” she recalled asking herself.
Her eldest son, Logan, goes to school in Landers. Flores said about 90 percent of the families who go to Logan’s school also rely on SNAP benefits. When she heard about the fundraiser the community was heading, she told five other families.
“I sent the info to five other families that I know really, really could use the support. And they’ve all received gift cards through The Desert Provides. And I know that it’s been a huge help and it’s really relieved a lot of that burden for us.”
Luis Avila
PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) — A quiet Palm Desert neighborhood is on edge after a string of late-night doorbell pranks have escalated into acts of vandalism and safety concerns.
Residents say “ding-dong ditch” games have turned into something more serious — with kids not only ringing doorbells but also kicking doors and damaging property.
Security footage from one home shows a group of young people approaching a house late at night, pounding and kicking on the front door before running off. One appears to be filming the incident.
Halley, a resident who asked to remain anonymous, says she was home when it happened Saturday night.
“We were laying in bed reading and it sounded like a bomb went off. It was terrifying. We came out, looked around, and didn’t see anything. We did end up walking down the road and saw them kicking another neighbor’s door and running off.”
Halley, Palm Desert Resident
The impact left scuff marks and footprints on her front door. But she says her biggest concern isn’t the damage — it’s the safety of the kids involved.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department told News Channel 3 that these kinds of incidents can lead to property damage, confrontations, and even injuries. Deputies warn that such pranks could be considered disturbing the peace, vandalism, or trespassing — all of which carry potential criminal penalties.
Halley hopes parents take the incidents seriously and talk to their children before things go too far.
“I think parents should be talking to their teenagers, especially their teenage boys, about this stuff. It’s a funny prank right now, but it’s not funny if someone’s scared and has a gun and might not be all there.”
Halley, Palm Desert Resident
Deputies say they will respond to reports of doorbell pranks, and anyone found responsible could face enforcement action.
Stay with News Channel 3 for more.
