New video: Man shoots from parked car before officers fire back in Thousand Palms
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department released body-camera footage Friday that shows a man suspected in a hit-and-run case pulling a handgun and firing shots at a deputy from his car before officers began to shoot back at him at a parking lot in Thousand Palms in October.
The shootings occurred after deputies stopped a car with two occupants near the intersection of Ramon Road and Robert Road just after 7 p.m. on Oct. 18. That intersection, east of Interstate 10 and near a popular In-N-Out Burger, is home to a strip mall that contains several businesses.
The car that was stopped was suspected in a felony hit-and-run case, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said in the video Friday. While one deputy was detaining the driver of the car, Bianco said two additional deputies arrived to help with the investigation.
As the two deputies approached the passenger side of the vehicle, body-cam footage released Friday shows the seated passenger pulling a pistol and firing shots at the deputies, one of whom was just outside his car window.
The passenger then barricaded himself inside the vehicle and refused to follow further commands, Bianco said, at which point officials from the sheriff's Special Enforcement Bureau, the California Highway Patrol and other agencies arrived to assist. Bianco said the passenger later pointed his handgun again at police officers on scene, who fired more shots in response.
One deputy, who has not been identified, was hit by the gunfire and then transported to a hospital. Bianco said Friday the deputy is continuing to recover from his injuries.
The suspected shooter, identified as Kristian Galeana of Thousand Palms, was taken to a hospital after deputies provided medical aid at the scene. Bianco said Friday he is recovering from his injuries as he remains in sheriff's custody, while the driver was uninjured.
The body-camera videos released by the department Friday show one unidentified deputy approaching the passenger side of the car, saying he thinks the passenger is lying about his name. Seconds later, the passenger fires several shots from his car seat, with the deputies briefly retreating before returning fire.
Body-camera footage from another deputy shows him asking the passenger to step out of the car and show his hands, at which point the passenger fired shots in his direction. The video shows the deputy running behind a car parked in front of Desert Spa in the shopping plaza before firing multiple shots toward the suspected shooter.
Two more body-camera videos from the altercation released Friday show two other deputies — one with a handgun, the other with a larger assault rifle — shooting at the suspect and yelling, “Put your hands down!”
Jail records show Galeana, 27, has been charged with several felony counts, including first-degree attempted murder. The alleged driver, Jose Eduardo Rosales Perez, is also facing several felony charges, including attempted murder of a peace officer and possession of a firearm as a felon.
The shootings remain under investigation, with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the sheriff department’s Force Investigations Detail collaborating to review the event.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: New video: Man shoots from parked car before officers fire back in Thousand Palms
