Month: March 2009

Operation Falling Sun, the biggest gang raid in county history, is still the talk of the town in Desert Hot Springs at the beginning of this week. Local, state and federal officers arrested 120 people on Friday. Stephen Bennett, like a lot of people in Desert Hot Springs, is happy 120 accused criminals are off

Gottschalks is one store that won’t be charging the increased sales tax for long. The retail chain will be closing. That’s bad news for two Valley cities. Gottschalks is the anchor store for both the Palm Springs Mall and the Indio Fashion Mall. The Fresno-based retailer chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year.

Up until the late 1990’s, each person inside received five cards. There’s a pay card, a berthing or “housing” card, a chow card, a social card, and, a bonus card. If the production statistics for a worker or their team go down, management took a card or two away. If you lost your chow card,

The Church of Scientology believes one woman, Maureen Bolstad, is one of the worst people in the world. She is one of a few to be declared a “suppressive person.” Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard declared so-called “suppressive” people “cannot be granted the rights ordinarily accorded rational beings.”Her crime? Talking to the media about the

By: Elyse Miller News Channel 3 Reporter PALM SPRINGS – About 700 mourners gathered in Palm Springs on Friday to say goodbye to the man known as the cowboy mayor. 99 year-old Frank Bogert died at his home home on Sunday night, surrounded by his family. Family, friends, cowboys and community members say final goodbyes

These tough times are taking a toll on families and children. The terrible economic stress on parents could cause them to lash out at their own children. At the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center at Eisenhower Medical, people wear blue ribbons to represent the black and blue bruises millions of children wear on their bodies. “Children

THOUSAND PALMS- A cat that survived a crash that killed its owner on Interstate 10 last month will be flown to Pittsburgh on Friday to be with the man’s family, an animal control spokesman said Thursday. Shadow’s owner, Derrick Raymond Finch, a 36-year-old jazz pianist from Los Angeles, died at the scene of the Feb.

The recent quake swarm is making earthquakes the talk of the desert. People living in one local isolated community are surprised to learn scientists think they could be cut off from the outside world for up to 7 weeks after a major earthquake. Local emergency officials say roads into and out of Sky Valley would

We interviewed former Scientologist Maureen Bolstad last Friday. News Channel 3 met her in front of Scientology’s IntBase in Hemet. She told us about years of abuse and coercion at the hands of Church management. Bolstad showed us her Social Security tax forms. Many of them show zero income for several years she was working

The Bighorn sheep in the mountains above Palm Desert are both iconic and endangered. Over the years, the Bighorn Institute’s lambing pens helped to slowly raise the numbers of these sheep. The Corniche at Bighorn luxury home development may be moving closer than the 400 yard buffer zone. When Palm Desert’s city council heard 30,000

INDIO – Workers and family members banded together for a candlelight vigil to save the Oasis Mental Health Rehabilitation Center’s long-term unit. The long-term unit serves more than 30 patientsfrom the Coachella Valley andwill close its doors on June 30th because of the tough economic situation. Marie Ryser says she understands the economy is tough,

THERMAL- An arson fire at the Thermal mobile home park known as Duroville destroyed a double-wide mobile home, but no one was injured, a fire official said Wednesday. The fire was reported at 10:58 p.m. Tuesday at the Desert Mobile Home Park, better known as Duroville, which is located at 68800 Pierce St., said Cal

One local city councilman is being accused of hurling racist insults at a water district office worker. Desert Hot Springs Councilman Karl Baker says the accusations are just dirty politics. Baker wanted to transfer water service to his new home. But, when he went to the Mission Springs Water District office, it turned ugly. Employees

By: Elyse Miller More adults are going back to school after losing their jobs. They’re trying to make the best of a bad situation. Rafaela Mundo used to spend her days working at a day care center, until she got laid off. ” Parents lost their jobs and couldn’t pay for day care,” says student,

What would you do if you got a check in the mail for $3,000? They’re popping up in mailboxes across the Desert with letters about secret shopper opportunities or consumer sweepstakes. But, they are a scam. Jere Alm thought he hit the jackpot. He found a check in his mailbox for $3,670. A letter claimed

By: Elyse Miller PALM SPRINGS – San Francisco Mayor, Gavin Newsom, was in the valley this weekend. As part of his town hall meeting tour called, “Conversations on California’s Future.” Mayor Newsom made a splash throughout California as a strong advocate for gay marriage rights, a fight he won’t give up. Mayor Newsom says he’ll

Cathedral City officials say there are 21 city projects eligible for funds from the federal stimulus plan. Those projects could potentially create about 2,200 jobs and bring in more than $8 million for the city. “Our city manager has been attending weekly meetings with other cities in the valley to develop a cohesive and collaborative

PALM SPRINGS- Two armed robbers who took cash from two people in a driveway are also suspects in a similar robbery earlier this month, a police sergeant said. The latest robbery was reported at 10:44 p.m. Tuesday in the 1000 block of Deepwell Road. The victims told police they were approached in their driveway by

T.H.E. Center, which is Therapy for Handi-Capable Equestrians, has been operating in Hemet for 25 years. Teachers there give weekly riding lessons to disabled kids and adults, helping boost their self-confidence. Typically, instructors are only worried about students getting the most out of their riding time. But last month, the center was dealt a cruel

As schools around the state struggle with budget cuts, hundreds of students at one of our local schools are struggling with English. More than 90 percent of the students in Mecca speak English as a second language. This can make learning and passing tests difficult, but some local retirees are breaking down the language barriers,