News

A death sentence was handed down today for one of two menconvicted of carjacking, kidnapping, robbing and killing a 55-year-old Indioresident. Carlos Contreras, 34, was convicted in February of the May 7, 2008,murder of Daniel Kuzawa, and jurors found true special circumstance allegationsof murder in the commission of a robbery, kidnapping and carjacking. The same

Country music fans will fill Indio’s Empire Polo Clubtoday for the Stagecoach country music festival. The festival, which runs through Sunday, will be headlined by TobyKeith, Hank Williams Jr. and Trace Adkins today, Lady Antebellum, DierksBentley and Dwight Yoakam on Saturday and the Zac Brown Band, Lonestar and theCharlie Daniels Band on Sunday. Today’s first

George Jones, the peerless, hard-living country singer who recorded dozens of hits about good times and regrets and peaked with the heartbreaking classic “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” has died. He was 81. Publicist Kirt Webster says Jones died Friday at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville after being hospitalized with fever and irregular blood

Riverside County Sheriff Stanley Sniff will be among the family and friends who will appear May 9th during the unveiling of a memorial in Murrieta in honor of a slain deputy. The ceremony will also feature the unveiling of a mural 20 years to the day sheriff’s Deputy Kent Hintergardt was gunned down during a

No injuries to report after a fire at a Bermuda Dunes restaurant. The fire was reported at 6:37 p.m.on the 79 thousand block of Avenue 42, at Murph’s Gaslight restaurant on Thursday. The fire was contained about an hour later in the kitchen and a roof ventilation unit. Firefighters remained on scene for about two

A Coachella Valley congressman, a representative from Sen. Barbara Boxer’s office and an official from the Department of the Interior will take part in a public meeting today about the Salton Sea. Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Desert, U.S. Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Anne Castle and Boxer’s representative, Joaquin Esquivel,

The Los Angeles City Council’s Public Safety Committee is expected to consider two proposed gun control measures today. Committee members will get an update from the City Attorney’s office on a proposed law banning possession of large-capacity ammunition clips. The sale and transfer of the clips is a crime in California, but people can still

Goodwill Industries of Southern California has agreed to settle federal allegations that it discriminated against men in hiring. The Department of Labor says Goodwill on Thursday agreed to settle claims that it favored women for entry-level jobs at its donation centers, in part because of an impression that women have better customer service skills. Authorities

Saddling up for a wild weekend, country lovers rode into the Empire Polo Grounds in Indio on Thursday to kick off three days of Stagecoach 2013. This year will feature headliners Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum and the Zac Brown Band. The highlight for some fans is camping out. “I know it’s just a big tailgate

Palm Desert resident Kathleen “Sunshine” O’Brien is helping in the fight against breast cancer by helping to raise money for a cure by selling specially decorated western-style boots. O’Brien and her two sisters, Brenda and Angel were all diagnosed with breast cancer within an 11 month period. The sisters have all had double mastectomies and

Douglas Graziano chips away at a basement wall in his Cleveland tavern, in the hopes of chipping away at the mystery surrounding the disappearance of union boss Jimmy Hoffa. Hoffa disappeared in Detroit in 1975, but Graziano believes the basement in his bar may be Hoffa’s final resting place. The previous owner of Wexler’s Tavern

A Twentynine Palms Marine who fought for freedom in Afghanistan now fights for his life after being shot in the head on American soil. Craig Maddy’s frustrated parents want an arrest. “He was the all American all-American kid,” said John Arnold, Maddy’s Stepfather. Maddy, 21, had just finished a tour in Afghanistan. Our cameras were

The country remains on high alert after the Boston Marathon bombings. Federal, state and local authorities continue to look for any possible threats of violence or suspicious activity. Preparation is also key. The Loma Linda University Security Department has been on high alert, educating staff, students and faculty on being alert and assisting the security

Jimmy Hoffa disappeared on July 30, 1975. Over the past 38 years, Hoffa’s disappearance sparked a lot of speculation and many searches. The latest search centers on a bar in Cleveland, Ohio. In the basement, the owner, is taking down a wall some that could be Hoffa’s final resting place. In addition to 11 bone

A Southern California Edison worker died and three otherworkers sustained minor injuries today in an industrial accident involvingunderground equipment in Menifee, authorities said. The identity of the fatally injured employee — declared dead at thescene of the 7:47 a.m. accident — was unavailable, as were the names of theinjured workers, according to Riverside County Fire

The 26-foot-tall sculpture of film legend MarilynMonroe will stay in downtown Palm Springs through the summer, three monthslonger than planned, it was announced today. Sculptor Seward Johnson’s “Forever Marilyn” was installed by crane atPalm Canyon Drive and Tahquitz Canyon Way last May after a weeklong trip fromits previous home in Chicago. The 34,300-pound statue was

More than 1,450 marijuana plants were discovered duringsearches of two unoccupied Eastvale homes, but no arrests were made, asheriff’s sergeant said today. Members of a sheriff’s task force received a tip about the homes duringan investigation into pot-growing operations in Eastvale, Riverside Countysheriff’s Sgt. Justin Rowan said. At 4 p.m. Wednesday, deputies served a search

A magnitude-3.1 earthquake has struck six miles south-southwest ofIdyllwild and 17 miles southwest of Palm Springs, according to the U.S.Geological Survey. The quake struck just before noon. There have been no initial reports of injuries or damage.

A Desert Hot Springs man suspected of stealing amotorcycle, stripping it and putting the parts on his own motorcycle was behindbars today, police said. John Thomas Faile, 43, was arrested shortly after 7:30 p.m. Wednesday inthe 31800 block of Shelter Drive in Thousand Palms, sheriff’s Sgt. BradFarwell said. After a short foot pursuit, Faile was