Families rally for justice on Halloween shooting anniversary
In 2010, a Halloween party in Indio turned deadly when two men were gunned down. Three years later, no arrests have been made and the family continues to plead for justice.
Isable Morales Jr., 35, of La Quinta was found dead just after 1 AM on October 31, 2010 outside a home in the 47100 block of Palm View Street, according to the Riverside County Coroner’s Office.
Victor Padilla, 32, of Indio died just after 2 p.m. Sunday at a local hospital, the coroner’s office reported.
Each year, the families of the two men rally outside the Larson Justice Center, asking for the person or persons who killed their loved ones. “This was a double homicide,” said Emma Fernandez, Morales’ mother. “There’s someone out there that killed two persons.”
Fernandez still mourns the death of her son. Padilla’s family still remembers the night vividly. “My uncle was in the hospital and it was just horrifying,” saids his niece Elisabeth Berazas.
What’s scarier for the families is knowing the killer or killers remain free. “We have lots of really good information,” said Ben Guitron from the Indio Police Department. “Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to positively ID the person or people that were involved.”
The families and detectives believe there were plenty of people at the party to see what happened. ” Someone or a group of people that will come forward, saying ‘I saw it,’ ‘I was there,’ and that’s what’s going to bring closure to the family members,” said Guitron.
The families plan to stand on the corner of the Larson Justice Center every Halloween asking anyone who knows something, to say something. “We’ve been grieving ever since and it’s going to continue until something happens,” said Fernandez.
