A condemned inmate who held a 16-year-old girl captive for weeks in Jurupa Valley, sexually assaulting and torturing her until directing his accomplice to execute the victim, died in a state prison hospice ward, authorities said today.  Michael Forrest Thornton, 68, of Rialto, was at California Medical Facility in Vacaville when he was pronounced dead
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Two court dates were confirmed today, including the start of trial, for a 23-year-old man suspected in a late-night shooting last year that injured two people in Palm Springs. Joel Ramirez Benitez of Palm Springs is accused of felony counts of attempted murder, assault with a gun and a sentence-enhancing allegation of causing great bodily
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A 28-year-old man accused of driving under the influence and crashing into the guard rail on Interstate 10, killing the female passenger in his vehicle, pleaded guilty today to DUI gross vehicular manslaughter. In addition to the guilty plea, Giovanny Michel Solis Rivero admitted a sentence-enhancing allegation of a serious felony involving great bodily injury
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Two people were arrested on suspicion of starting the Jack Fire in Beaumont over the weekend. The Jack Fire was first sparked at around 5:00 p.m. on Sunday in the area of Jack Rabbit Trail and Highway 60. It burned 261 acres before it was fully contained on Tuesday. According to CAL FIRE, a vehicle
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NOTE in the story published Tuesday on this case, CNS referenced the defendant as acquitted entirely for the death of the victim. That was not accurate, owing largely to the court clerk’s incomplete notations in the summary minutes available to the public. At 5:15 p.m. Monday, those minutes showed “acquitted” of murder, but did not
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A woman struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in Cathedral City over the weekend was identified as Christina Barrington, 60, police announced. The crash was first reported to police on Friday, Oct. 11 at around 12:45 a.m. in the area of East Palm Canyon Drive and Bankside Drive. Officers arrived and found Barrington down
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The man suspected of possessing two loaded guns and a high-capacity magazine outside Donald Trump’s weekend rally near Coachella was out on bail today — and reportedly is threatening to sue Riverside County after being called a possible assassination threat to the former president. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said Sunday that deputies might
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Two people suspected of vandalism causing over $10,000 of damage to public and private property in Coachella Valley were taken into custody today. Palm Desert Sheriff’s Station deputies responded to the intersection of Monterey Avenue and Verbenia Drive in September regarding a wall damaged by graffiti, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. The areas
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Deputies are searching the area after a pursuit ended in a rollover crash Monday night in Mecca. The incident started at around 9:10 p.m. Deputies were called out to the area of Hammond Road and Johnson Street in Mecca regarding a suspicious vehicle. Deputies arrived at the scene, found the vehicle, and attempted a traffic
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By Leticia Juarez Click here for updates on this story BANNING, California (KABC) — Adam and Carlie Whitlatch shared a love story that started when the two were just 11- and 12-year-old middle school students in Beaumont. The couple were married for exactly 13 days when the future they planned together came to a tragic
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A 44-year-old found dead from apparent gunshot wounds over the weekend in Coachella was identified by the coroner’s office. Roman Gamboa Jr. of Coachella was found dead Saturday at around 3:20 a.m. on the 85400 block of Cairo Street. According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were originally called to the 51800 block of
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A man who carried out a series of burglaries in Desert Hot Springs pleaded guilty to felony charges. Javien Odell, 32, entered guilty pleas on Friday to felony charges of burglary, receiving stolen property and purchasing or receiving a stolen vehicle, according to case records, at the Larson Justice Center in Indio. Â Â Odell was
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A Las Vegas man was arrested Saturday near the site of former President Donald Trump’s rally in the Coachella Valley, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies assigned to security details at the rural rally site near Coachella said they contacted a driver in a black SUV at a checkpoint at Avenue 52 and
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One person is dead and homicide detectives are searching for those responsible. According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, at 3:23 Saturday morning, deputies from the Thermal Station were dispatched to the 51-800 block of Shady Lane, in the city of Coachella, regarding an assault with a deadly weapon. Upon arrival, deputies located a man
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A trial date was set today for a Coachella man accused of trying to kidnap a then-15-year-old girl in Thermal more than two years ago. Christian Daniel Arreola, 21, was charged with three felony counts — one each of assault with intent to commit mayhem, sexual battery, and attempted kidnapping, robbery and/or rape, according to
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A student was briefly hospitalized and another was taken into custody after a fight at Colonel Mitchell Paige Middle School in La Quinta on Tuesday. The incident was first reported around noon. Deputies were informed of a physical altercation that had occurred between two minors at the school, located on the 43000 block of Palm
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A pair of suspects accused in a shooting at a Palm Desert shopping center entered guilty pleas today to attempted murder and other charges. Adelanto residents Allen Curcio Adams Jr. and Alexander Brice Alvarado, both 21, pleaded guilty to one count of attempted murder, one count of assault with a gun and two counts of
Continue Reading The prosecution rested Monday in the trial of a man accused of gunning down a 31-year-old acquaintance during an altercation that erupted in a Cathedral City restaurant. Willie Ramirez Bustamante, 34, of Cathedral City, is charged with second-degree murder and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations for the slaying last year of Ernesto Lazcano
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A man accused of leading police on a pursuit that ended in a deadly crash in Cabazon is out of jail on bail, according to Riverside County jail records. The suspect, a 48-year-old man from Hemet, was arrested Thursday following the end of the pursuit. There was no immediate word on whether he had been
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A 23-year-old man who stole nearly 500 gallons of diesel fuel from the Mecca Travel Center pleaded guilty to a theft-related count and was immediately sentenced to two years of probation. Huntington Park resident Eliseo Laglera entered a guilty plea to one count of grand theft of over $950 on Friday at the Larson Justice
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