Crime

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A 62-year-old man who struck and seriously injured a woman walking through a Palm Springs intersection because he was driving under the influence was sentenced today to three years’ felony probation.    Mark Gerald Blanchette of Palm Springs pleaded guilty on June 4 to DUI resulting in great bodily injury and

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – The defense is slated to rest tomorrow in the trial of an ex-Riverside County sheriff’s deputy accused of gunning down a man with whom he was at odds because the victim had been involved with the lawman’s then-girlfriend.   Oscar Rodriguez, 44, is charged with first-degree murder and sentence-enhancing gun and great

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Indio police officers issued six citations and arrested one person for allegedly evading officers during a DUI checkpoint, authorities announced today. The checkpoint was conducted from 6 p.m. Friday until 1 a.m. Saturday at Jackson Street and Dillon Avenue, police said.    Citations were issued for violations including driving with a

BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury selection is slated to get underway tomorrow for the trial of a 43-year-old Banning man accused of raping two women on separate occasions while they were intoxicated, as well as molesting his 12-year-old girl.   Steven Roy McElroy was arrested in 2022 following an extensive Banning Police Department investigation that relied

LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ) – Homicide investigators with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department have made an arrest in the 2019 shooting death of a man in La Quinta, authorities said. The suspect, a 23-year-old man from Whitewater, was taken into custody Friday after investigators developed new leads and reopened a cold case, according to sheriff’s

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A pool serviceman who fatally beat a 93-year-old Palm Desert woman while trying to steal from her was sentenced today to 19 years to life in state prison. An Indio jury in April convicted Benjamin Cabrera Briones, 62, of Thousand Palms of second-degree murder, as well as burglary and forgery, for

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A convicted felon who choked his girlfriend to death during a domestic conflict in the parking lot of an Indio condominium complex was sentenced today to 15 years to life in state prison. An Indio jury in April convicted 44-year-old Eduardo Alvarez of the 2020 slaying of 32-year-old Madeleine Gutierrez of

Editor’s Note: The original version of this article had the sentence as 25 years to life. This was incorrect. Jose Ernesto Martinez was sentenced to 50 years to life INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A Desert Hot Springs man convicted of killing his girlfriend’s lover was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. Jose Ernesto

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – Spectrum is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information on a vandalism incident in the Palm Springs area this week. According to the company, individuals intentionally cut its fiber lines on Wednesday in the southeast area of Palm Springs, causing a service outage for some customers and businesses

MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A jury deliberated one day before convicting a young man of first-degree murder for fatally shooting a 17-year-old Cathedral City boy during a street confrontation that possibly stemmed from ill-will that had developed when the two worked together. A Murrieta jury on Tuesday afternoon found Juan Alfredo Landeros Garcia, 26, of

Editor’s Note: The wrong address for the Arabian Gardens Mobile Home Park was listed in the original version of the article. The correct address is on Clinton Street and Fred Waring Drive. INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Police recovered several illegal firearms during a search warrant service at a mobile home park in Indio Wednesday morning.

BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – An 82-year-old man convicted of killing a 75-year-old woman in Palm Springs six years ago was sentenced to 15 years to life on Monday. Last month, Stephen Roy McKernan was found guilty of second-degree murder in the killing of Claire Carsman at her Palm Springs home in 2019. The jury also