Two teens charged with murder in death of 17-year-old at La Quinta post-prom party
Two young men accused of fatally shooting a 17-year-old boy during a confrontation at a post-prom party in La Quinta were charged on Wednesday with murder, with both entering pleas of not guilty during their arraignments in court the same day.
Elijah Alfredo Martinez of Bermuda Dunes and Dominick Cruz Venecia of Coachella — both 18 — were arrested Sunday following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation.
The deceased teenager was identified by Desert Sands Unified School District on Monday as Jaden Ramos, a senior at La Quinta High School.
Along with murder, both defendants are charged with sentence-enhancing gun use allegations.
They made a joint initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, with friends and family in attendance, though only Venecia was visible to media members on hand. Each is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Benoit Detention Center.
Sheriff’s officials said the alleged attack happened about 2:30 a.m. Sunday in the 79-000 block of Paseo Del Rey, near La Quinta Park.
According to Sgt. Lance Stoyer, deputies were sent to the location to investigate reports of a shooting, but couldn’t find a victim. However, they were soon informed that a boy had been taken from the area to a Coachella Valley hospital for treatment.
Stoyer said Ramos arrived at the trauma center “with injuries consistent with a gunshot wound.”
The teenager succumbed a short time later.
Martinez and Venecia were identified the same day as suspects, and detectives eventually obtained sufficient evidence to serve arrest warrants on each — Martinez on Airport Boulevard in Thermal Sunday afternoon, and Venecia near the intersection of Avenue 50 and Mazatlan Drive in Coachella Sunday night.
Both defendants were facing charges for possessing firearms, while Venecia was facing a charge for personally and intentionally discharged his firearm.
They were taken into custody without incident. A possible motive for the slaying wasn’t disclosed.
Neither defendant has documented prior felony convictions in adult court. Juvenile records were unavailable.
A preliminary hearing for the case has been scheduled for June 5.
Staff writer Tom Coulter contributed to this report. Previous reporting by The Desert Sun is also included in this report.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Two men charged with murder in death of teen at post-prom party
