Trial date set for man accused of publicly exposing himself multiple times

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) - An Aug. 13 trial date was confirmed today for a 24-year-old man accused of publicly exposing himself to multiple young women in La Quinta.

Christopher Duran Jr. of Thermal was arrested in 2020 following a Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigation that was based on a rash ofcomplaints against the defendant, who is charged with three counts each of indecent exposure and attempted indecent exposure, all misdemeanors.

During a status hearing at the Larson Justice Center in Indio Friday, Superior Court Judge Sylwia Luttrell conferred with the prosecution and defense regarding scheduling, and both sides agreed to make preparations for trial in mid-August.

Duran is free on $5,000 bond.   

From February 2022 to May of this year, the defendant was in court- ordered mental health diversion stemming from ongoing doubts about his fitness to stand trial. After completing a behavioral health program, Duran's case was referred back to regular proceedings for adjudication.

Court documents indicated his alleged offenses occurred between Nov. 22, 2019, and April 30, 2020, during which time he allegedly flashed a half-dozen young women whose identities were not disclosed.  

His May 5, 2020, arrest was the culmination of a monthlong investigation by sheriff's deputies, who looked into a "series of indecent exposure incidents that were occurring in the area of Avenue 58 and Madison Street," according to Sgt. David Aldrich.

Deputies located a vehicle belonging to a person believed responsible for the acts and stopped the driver, Duran, detaining him in the same area where the crimes had been reported.

Aldrich said the defendant was "positively identified as the suspect."   

He has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.