PSPD Chief frustrated by early release of repeat vandalism offender; Man rearrested days later after violating restraining order

Update 8/4/22:

The repeat offender has been arrested again after violating his restraining order against the business he vandalized, Palm Springs Police Chief Andrew Mills announced on Facebook.

Mills wrote that Joshua Moon was arrested again after returning to the area he vandalized.

After being released early just days after being sentenced to 16 months in jail, Moon was served with a restraining order meant to prevent him from coming within 200 yards of that business.

You can watch our interview with Chief Mills in the player above.

Original Report 8/3/22:

Police officials say a man who has smashed several businesses' windows in downtown Palm Springs is out of custody despite being sentenced to 16 months in jail. 

Joshua Moon, 42, was sentenced to more than a year in county jail just last week. He pled guilty to a vandalism charge for throwing a rock through the front window of the Starbucks Reserve in downtown Palm Springs.

Newly obtained surveillance video shows the moment that Moon walked up to the Starbucks and shattered the window.

This was not the first window moon shattered. Last month, he plead guilty to smashing the window of Il Corso right next door to the Starbucks Reserve. Moon was serving a year-long probation for that crime when he was arrested for the Starbucks vandalism.

Palm Springs Police Chief Andrew Mills said Moon was released from jail for his most recent vandalism after just three days. He got out on Monday thanks to what's called a "Fed Kick," an early release program for nonviolent offenders to prevent overcrowding in jails. 

It's a punishment Mills says is unfair to the Palm Springs community.

"It's incredibly frustrating for our officers and for our community to think that a person who was sentenced to a fairly lengthy time in jail for an egregious event, was able to get out of jail, and go back into the community and be right back where the crime occurred in a very short period of time," Mills said.

Mills continued, "It's time that I, as a police chief, speak out on that. To make sure that our community understands that we're aware of these problems and that we're trying to deal with them as best we can.

Moon has now been served with a restraining order meant to prevent him from coming within 200 yards of that business. 

Palm Springs police are warning people downtown if you see Moon on that block of Palm Canyon Drive to call pspd's non emergency dispatch line.