Video with guns sent to James Workman Middle School students; man and 12-year-old detained

Jonathan Horwitz, Palm Springs Desert Sun
·2 min read
1

Cathedral City police ordered a lockout at Rio Vista Elementary School and responded to a threat to students who attend James Workman Middle School on Wednesday morning, and later detained a 39-year-old man and a 12-year-old in relation to the threat.

According to the Cathedral City Police Department, patrol officers went to James Workman Middle School around 9 a.m. on Wednesday regarding a report of a student who had sent from off-campus a threatening video to other students; in the video, he displayed two handguns.

School officials reported the video to the police, and there was not a threat at the school, according to Palm Springs Unified spokesperson Joan Boiko.

After interviewing school officials, Cathedral City police detectives determined the boy in the video was a 12-year-old who was not at school on Wednesday, according to the Cathedral City Police Department.

Detectives were granted a search warrant to search the juvenile's residence in the 67-700 block of Verona Road.

Because the residence is near Rio Vista Elementary School, police requested that the school go on lockout as a safety precaution.

A lockout is similar to a lockdown, but is the term used by school officials when the threat is off-campus.

The first day of school at Rio Vista Elementary School in Cathedral City, Calif., August 10, 2022.
The first day of school at Rio Vista Elementary School in Cathedral City, Calif., August 10, 2022.

Rio Vista Elementary remained on lockout for about 20 minutes, from 11:25 a.m. to around 11:46 a.m.

During that time, police detained the boy at his home along with Roman Rodriguez, 39. The police also located three firearms, including the ones depicted in the video that prompted the investigation.

Police said these items were recovered from a residence on Verona Road as they investigated the video of the boy with guns.
Police said these items were recovered from a residence on Verona Road as they investigated the video of the boy with guns.

The 12-year-old was taken into custody for criminal threats and transferred to the Indio Juvenile Hall.

Rodriguez was arrested for child endangerment, felon in possession of a firearm, possession of an illegal rifle, and possession of unregistered firearms. He was taken to the Riverside County Jail in Indio.

It was not immediately clear whether Rodriguez and the boy are related.

Jonathan Horwitz covers education for The Desert Sun. Reach him at jonathan.horwitz@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Cathedral City: Rio Vista Elementary locked down; 12-year-old arrested