Indio, Calif. – Riverside County Crime Grand Jury indicts longtime Coachella mayor on nine counts, including one count of aggravated assault
Steven Hernandez, 42, who has served on the Coachella City Council for nearly two decades, pleaded guilty Thursday morning at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Hernandez was a rising politician in Riverside County and Chaachella, an agricultural town of 42,500 people about 130 miles southeast of Los Angeles. If convicted as charged, Hernandez would be barred from holding public office for life and face up to seven years in state prison, according to Riverside County Dist. Atty. Mike hestrin.
Hernandez grew up in Coachella with her grandparents, who were migrant farm workers. First elected to the council in 2006, he became an important part of the powerful Latino community in the East Valley of Palm Springs.
Under his leadership, the city was built massive infrastructure investment In its downtown, it includes an expanded library, a new old center and a new fire station. It has improved its parks and transportation. Money poured into the campaign wall during local elections, something Hernandez called 2020 “showing the power of the people unite their political machines. “
But some of Hernandez’s votes from the Dais apparently caught the attention of the Riverside County District Attorney’s office.
The lawsuits also involved his vote to approve a contract between the city of Coachella and the Coafella Valley Assn. The Government’s First Program, which uses homeless people, and their votes and autonomy related to urban development projects, according to a statement from Hestrinin.
Donkey. A spokeswoman said the agency is cooperating fully with the district attorney’s office and the Grand Jury and “there has been no indication from the investigators that any of the CVAG’s selected actions were involved.”
Fejury’s charges are related to claims made by Hernandez in his statement of public interest, also known as Form 700, the district attorney said.
Hernandez will remain the Mayor of Coachella “until told otherwise,” according to City spokesperson Riseth Lora.
Along with serving on the city council, Hernandez serves as chief of staff to Riverside County Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. He was placed on supervised leave, Cerez said in a statement on Wednesday, adding: “Although we are still waiting for more information, it is our understanding that the charges are not related to his role in our office. “
Hernandez surrendered to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office at the Robert Presey Detention Center in Riverside on Tuesday and posted $112,500 bail. He appeared before Riverside County Court Judge John J. Ryan on Thursday morning. Dressed in a navy suit, he put his hands behind his lawyer’s back and entered the servants’ quarters.
He gave himself the glasses when he left the court.
This article is part of the Times’ Equity reporting measure, sponsored by James Irvine Foundationexamining the challenges facing low-wage workers and advocacy efforts California’s economic diversification.
