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MONDAY, JANUARY 29- FEBRUARYY 04, 2024
VOL. 10,
Law enforcement officers shoot armed suspect in Beaumont
County students begin monthlong mock trial competition
T
he opening rounds of the 42nd Riverside County Mock Trial competition got underway Thursday. The fictional case in this year’s competition People v. Clark is based on the murder of a CEO and the revelation of a plot to commit corporate fraud, according to the Riverside County Office of Education, which organizes the event. Riverside County students from 22 high schools will adjudicate the case throughout January and February. As of press time results for the tournament’s opening matchups were pending release, Office of Education spokesman Craig Petinak said. The opening rounds took place at three locations in the county — the first county high school team listed was the prosecution, and the second team was the defense: The Desert division rounds were at the Larson Justice Center in Indio and featured La Quinta vs. Palm Desert and Palo Verde vs. Indio. The Riverside division took place at the Robert Presley Hall of Justice in Riverside. Patriot High School took on Martin Luther King HS, and other matchups included Valley View vs. John W. North HS; Santiago vs. Heritage; and Notre Dame vs. Riverside Poly. The Southwest section took place at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta and featured Hemet vs. Great Oak; Liberty vs. Murrieta Valley; Temecula Valley vs. San Jacinto; Paloma Valley vs. Santa Rosa Academy; and Chaparral vs. Ramona.
NO. 157
By City News Service
By Staff
A
n armed suspect was in critical condition Thursday after he was shot after a pursuit by officers from a Riverside task force in Beaumont. Officers from the Riverside County Regional Gang Task Force were in the area of Whittier Avenue and Girard Street in Hemet at 7:16 p.m. Wednesday when they came in contact with a wanted felon who was inside of a vehicle and possibly armed with a handgun, said Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Deirdre Vickers. The suspect refused the officers commands to surrender and drove away at a high rate of speed. The officers attempted to stop the vehicle and a pursuit was initiated. They pursued the suspect through the Hemet area onto northbound Highway 79 and the suspect’s vehicle became disabled in the area of Veile Avenue and Fourth Street in Beaumont, where the suspect ran from the vehicle, Vickers said. The officers chased the suspect on foot behind an industrial complex in the 500 block of B Street and during the pursuit, the suspect drew a handgun and officers shot the suspect. Vickers said the suspect was struck by gunfire and | Image courtesy of the Riverside County Office of Education
See Armed suspect Page 23
During the Mock Trial, students argue cases in front of actual judges while practicing attorneys give scores on competitors’ courtroom technique. All students in grades 9-12 who attend public and private high schools in Riverside County are eligible to participate in the Mock Trial, officials said. Teams consist of 8-25 students who assume the courtroom roles of defense attorneys and prosecutors, witnesses, clerks and others involved in the judicial process. Attorneys, judges and legal professionals from throughout Riverside County are among the 14,000 students who have participated in the Mock Trial over the last four decades. The Riverside County Superior Court, the Riverside County Bar Association and the County Office of Education co-sponsor the competition. “The fictional case
materials provide the facts and legal background for this year’s trial, People v. Clark,” according to an Office of Education statement. “Sunshine Medical Components (SMC) Chief Executive Officer, Kieran Sunshine, was found murdered in a hotel room with apparent stab wounds from a small saber used to open champagne bottles. A plot to commit fraud against the SMC board of directors surfaced, and the prosecution believes this was a motive for the murder. “However, multiple executives at SMC — both of whom are family members of the deceased chief executive — may also have had motive or involvement. A review of the forensic evidence, collection techniques, and the legality of technology-focused warrants, will contribute to the fictitious trial.” Following the completion of multiple rounds of competition, the Mock Trial awards ceremony is sched-
uled for 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10 at the Office of Education Conference Center, 4280 Brockton Ave. in Riverside. The final competition is set for Thursday, Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. at the Riverside Historic Courthouse, 4050 Main St. in Riverside. Riverside County’s Mock Trial winners will represent the region at the California Mock Trial Competition March 22-24 in Los Angeles. The state winner advances to the National Mock Trial that is held May 2-5 in Wilmington, Delaware. Last year’s Riverside County finals featured Murrieta Valley High School defeating Martin Luther King High School to secure the school’s first Mock Trial championship in school history. Notre Dame and Hemet high schools shared third place. For a complete listing of the schedules and locations for all rounds of the competition, visit www.rcoe.us/ student-events/mock-trial.
Jurors deadlock in sanity trial of man who killed grandparents
J
By City News Service
urors deadlocked Wednesday in the sanity trial of a 37-year-old man who gunned down his octogenarian grandparents in Palm Desert, in what his attorney contends were acts of a mentally disturbed person, but the prosecution maintains were outright murders. Deliberations began Jan. 11 after a few days of testimony in the mental competency trial of Frank Scott Castro III, who pleaded guilty on Dec. 4, 2023, to two counts of first-degree murder and admitted to a specialcircumstance allegation of perpetrating multiple killings and sentence- enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations. “This afternoon, the jury advised the court that they were unable to come to a unanimous verdict,” Riverside County District Attorney’s Office spokesman John Hall told City News Service. “The judge, Anthony Villalobos, then declared a mistrial due to a hung jury.” Jurors had returned to deliberate at around 9 a.m. See Sanity trial Page 24