DA questions past probation of alleged baby killer, new judge swears in, Ontario staff recharged with felonies over ICE arrest
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Baby murder case causes Sheriff Bianco, DA Hestrin, to question judge and video creators
The charging of Jake and Rebecca Haro of the murder of their baby Emmanuel has caused the Riverside district attorney and sheriff to question both the handling of a prior case against Jake and the involvement of social media creators.
Riverside District Attorney Michael Hestrin and Sheriff Chad Bianco both said that Jake should be in prison after pleading guilty to the felony abuse of his other daughter with his ex-wife. Without naming Acting Riverside Superior Judge Dwight Moore, they criticized his decision to suspend Jake’s six-year prison sentence and place him on probation.
One month, three indictments: Ontario medical staffers face whiplash in charges following ICE arrest
Jose Ortega and Danielle Davila are once again facing felony charges, this time from the federal grand jury, for stepping in between unidentified ICE agents and Denis Guillen-Solis during a July 8 chase that ended in Ortega and Davila’s office building. Video of the event made national news.
The defendants maintain their innocence, and their attorneys said they were deescalating the situation between the agents and the gardener.
Riverside company denied restraining order against attempted shareholder
Riverside Superior Judge Danial Ottolia denied the Gage Canal Company’s petition for a workplace restraining order against Riverside whistleblower Jason Hunter on Aug. 29. The decision itself does not change much for the company majority-owned by the city of Riverside, but it may open up discussions between Hunter and the company’s board of directors. Read testimony from the Gage Canal staff in last week’s article.
Maggie Yang swears in to San Bernardino bench
San Bernardino’s newest judge, Maggie Yang, took her oath of office in Department V2 of Victorville’s Joseph B. Campbell Courthouse on Aug. 28.
“I came to the United States from Taiwan on December 26, 1985, when I was seven years old, when I arrived at my Aunt Theresa’s house that evening. It was the first time I had seen a Christmas tree, and it was the first time that I had received Christmas presents. That little seven-year-old immigrant girl, who did not even speak English at the time, could never have imagined that one day she would be standing here before you as a superior court judge,” Yang said.
Legal Aid of SB ends summer internship program with mock trial
Law students Deia Davis, Jasmine Sekhon, Alex Yee, Jesse Nunez and Katherine Demirchyan capped off their summer internships at the Legal Aid Society of San Bernardino with a mock trial on Aug. 4.
This year’s fictional case, People v. Jamie Cobey, centered on the mysterious death of Erik Smith, a 70-year-old landlord in the fictional desert community of Burnsley, California.
Federal agent shooting update
I reported last week that attorneys demanded an investigation from local and state officials into the federal agents’ shooting at Francisco Longoria, a San Bernardino man, while he was heading to work with his son and son-in-law. Jacquelyn Rodriguez, spokesperson for the San Bernardino County District Attorney, said the office will not review the shooting. The California Attorney General’s Office and San Bernardino Police Department have not responded to my request to comment.
“Currently, the San Bernardino County DA’s Office does not plan to review the incident. Similar to our own protocols, each agency has their own lethal force encounter investigation procedure. The federal agency would handle their own investigation,” Rodriguez wrote.
California GOP takes Newsom to court over redistricting, again. Will Trump sue next?
Fresh off their failed attempt to kill Gov. Gavin Newsom’s redistricting plan in the Democratic-controlled Legislature, California Republicans and anti-gerrymandering groups this week launched an all-out resistance to defeat what they regard as an unconstitutional ballot question.
Republican legislators in particular, many of whom lambasted Democrats in fiery floor speeches last week, have stressed that independent redistricting should be a nonpartisan affair. A few even ventured to lightly scold President Donald Trump for urging their counterparts in red states to redraw maps for political gain. And several filed a new lawsuit against the Newsom administration on Monday, their second in a week.
Nine years later, California court saga over $23,420 housing fee remains unsettled
Nine years ago, in preparation for his retirement, engineer George Sheetz bought a plot of rural land in El Dorado County and applied for a county permit to place a manufactured home on his parcel.
Little did he know that what he thought would be a routine administrative transaction would turn into a legal dispute that would wind its laborious way through California courts, reach the U.S. Supreme Court — where he won a unanimous ruling — and is now back in California’s judicial system with the eventual outcome still uncertain.
When federal courts fail to punish lawyers for potential misconduct, states can step in
In early August 2025, a federal appeals court in the District of Columbia stopped efforts by federal trial judge James Boasberg to consider whether to hold Trump administration lawyers in contempt of court.
In April, Boasberg had concluded there was probable cause to hold government lawyers in contempt for defying orders he had issued related to the deportation of migrants to a prison in El Salvador.
The appellate court’s ruling found that such contempt proceedings could not go forward on various technical grounds.
Stories from elsewhere
2 of Turpins’ attorneys now defending Haros against charges they murdered 7-month-old Emmanuel | Press-Enterprise
In exclusive jailhouse interview, father of baby Emmanuel says he would tell his missing son: ‘I love you, buddy’ | Press-Enterprise
Leaders of Hemet religious group arrested in Redlands missing person probe
Police seize firearms and electronics in raids across Southern California; investigation continues into 2023 disappearance of Nashville man
Community Forward Redlands
Fontana woman arrested in Redlands drive-by shooting that injured teen
Police say an 18-year-old woman was taken into custody on suspicion of attempted murder after a shooting left a 16-year-old boy hospitalized.
Community Forward Redlands
Court rules developer must pay prevailing wages on major Downtown Palm Springs project ⋆ The Palm Springs Post
The case centered on whether the project qualified as a “municipal affair” under California’s home rule provision, which allows charter cities to exempt themselves from state prevailing wage requirements on certain local projects.
Mark Talkington
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