Trial rescheduled for trio accused in rock attack

UPDATE: The trial for Ramirez, Hernandez, and Becerra-Gomez has been rescheduled to May 15.

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Three young men who allegedly took part in a rock-throwing assault outside a Palm Desert house party, leaving a young man comatose, are scheduled in court today for a trial on deadly weapon and conspiracy charges.

Miguel Angel Ramirez, 21, Nickolas Hernandez, 21, and Luis Becerra-Gomez, 20, are accused in the Aug. 14, 2016, assault on Trey O’Connor, which occurred outside a house party within a Palm Desert gated community at 111 Azzuro Drive.

The trio allegedly hatched the plan to attack O’Connor and other partygoers with rocks as retaliation for rocks and beer cans thrown at Becerra-Gomez’s pickup truck.

A fourth suspect, who was underage during the time of the a lleged assault, is accused of throwing the rock that caused O’Connor’s serious injuries. At one point, he was going to be tried as an adult along with his co-defendants, but his case has since been transferred to juvenile court.

According to a affidavit in support of an arrest warrant, the defendants left the party in Becerra-Gomez’s pickup truck about 2:30 a.m. but could not leave the premises because the exit gate was locked.

Ramirez allegedly threw a water bottle at a group of partygoers as they left, and in retaliation, the group, which included O’Connor, threw beer cans and rocks at Becerra-Gomez’s truck, denting it and shattering one of its mirrors, according to the document.

The defendants then allegedly drove to another part of the community and planned their return attack. Ramirez allegedly hatched the plan to retaliate by collecting two large rocks, which he gave to Hernandez and the minor suspect.

The group made a second pass by the house in Becerra-Gomez’s truck, and Hernandez and the minor threw the rocks, one of which struck O’Connor in the head, according to the declaration, which alleges that all four defendants “made admissions to their respective involvement in the assault of O’Connor.”

O’Connor, who suffered brain bleeding and a skull fracture as at one point in a medically induced coma after undergoing emergency brain surgery.