Man arrested with guns near Coachella Trump Rally has day in court
A Las Vegas man arrested at a Donald Trump rally in Coachella last October had a court date in Indio Thursday morning to face charges of carrying a loaded firearm in a public place.
Vem Miller, 49, was arrested Oct. 12. Riverside County Sheriff's deputies assigned to the rally. Miller did not appear before the judge at the Larson Justice Center Thursday morning, but his attorney entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf stated the Riverside County DA's Office. The judge set a date later this year for a pre-trial hearing.
Deputies made contact with Miller, at a checkpoint near the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive before Trump's arrival, sheriff's officials said. They allegedly found Miller in possession of a shotgun, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine.
At a news conference the next day, Sheriff Chad Bianco said deputies detained the suspect at a second checkpoint after they noticed the interior of his vehicle ``was in disarray,'' claiming that the vehicle had a fake license plate and the suspect had ``multiple'' fake passports and fake driver licenses with different names.
The sheriff said the vehicle's license plate, which he called ``homemade,'' was indicative that Miller was a part of a ``sovereign citizens'' movement, whose followers do not believe they are subject to any government regulations, including those for guns and vehicles. Miller later ``flatly denied'' the allegations.
Bianco also asserted that he believed ``We probably stopped another assassination attempt,'' referring two other recent attempts on Trump's life, despite Miller's claim that he was not there to harm the former president.
In comments to Southern California News Group, Miller said he supports Trump and only had the guns for protection. ``I'm an artist, I'm the last person that would cause any violence and harm to anybody,'' Miller told the newspaper group.
Miller later filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in Nevada against Bianco and some deputies, alleging defamation of character. Miller is due back in court for a pre-trial hearing on March 11th.
