Palm Springs Officer Slaying

[Sektor]

The man suspected of killing two Palm Springs police officers and wounding another was wearing body armor and equipped with high capacity magazines when he was taken into custody, authorities said.

SWAT officers made several attempts over the course of a 12-hour standoff to make contact with suspect John Felix, 26, who was holed up in his family's residence, authorities said at a Sunday morning news conference. But there was no response.

Remote-controlled robots were used unsuccessfully to pinpoint the suspect's location in the house. Eventually, chemical agents were deployed into the residence, authorities said.

"Almost immediately ... the suspect emerged out the back door," said Riverside County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Ray Wood. "When he emerged, he was wearing soft body armor and he had a number of high-capacity magazines on his person."

John Felix is expected to be booked on two counts of murder of a peace officer.
John Felix is expected to be booked on two counts of murder of a peace officer. (Riverside County Sheriff's Department)
Felix was not armed and surrendered peacefully when he was taken into custody about 1 a.m., authorities said. He was rushed to a hospital for treatment of injuries that were not life-threatening.

He was expected to be booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside on two counts of murder of a peace officer.

The officers killed were identified as Officer Jose "Gil" Vega, a 35-year veteran of the department who was due to retire in December, and Officer Lesley Zerebny, who had been with the department 1 ½ years and was the mother of a 4-month-old girl.

During Sunday's news conference, an emotional Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes spoke about the loss of his officers and the impact on the community.

He spoke of how Vega, who was working overtime, on Saturday, was scheduled to retire in December, and about watching Zerebny's husband, a Riverside sheriff's deputy, mourn his wife's loss.

"To see her laying there with her eyes open, and to witness her husband, in full Riverside Sheriff's uniform, kiss her on the forehead for the last time, it's tough," Reyes said, his voice quivering. "We're going to rely on you to help get us through this. Our community will get us through this." - LA Times

This happened in my back yard in Palm Springs, one of the most liberal places around down here (not being political, just stating my knowledge). I heard about this and it upsets me greatly. I don't know why people think it's okay to just kill somebody just because they're a cop. I even heard to day from a reliable source that this man, who they say is accused, was expelled from his Highschool due to violent tendencies. The school system down here refuses to suspend kids for dropping F-Bombs and even sexually harassing the teachers here, so he must have been pretty bad to have been outright expelled by a senior administrator.

He's been to prison twice before, so the gun he used was illegally obtained, more than likely. How does this correlate with what's happening in today's society? Is it that people think cops don't matter anymore? It's sick. It's just unbelievable. He killed two people, people with families and lives. He took away the mother of a baby girl that won't ever know her ma. Sick and sad that he felt he had to take out his failings on others and couldn't be a man and step up to his failings.

 

[Esper]

This happened in my back yard in Palm Springs, one of the most liberal places around down here (not being political, just stating my knowledge). I heard about this and it upsets me greatly. I don't know why people think it's okay to just kill somebody just because they're a cop. I even heard to day from a reliable source that this man, who they say is accused, was expelled from his Highschool due to violent tendencies. The school system down here refuses to suspend kids for dropping F-Bombs and even sexually harassing the teachers here, so he must have been pretty bad to have been outright expelled by a senior administrator.

He's been to prison twice before, so the gun he used was illegally obtained, more than likely. How does this correlate with what's happening in today's society? Is it that people think cops don't matter anymore? It's sick. It's just unbelievable. He killed two people, people with families and lives. He took away the mother of a baby girl that won't ever know her ma. Sick and sad that he felt he had to take out his failings on others and couldn't be a man and step up to his failings.

It is always awful when people are killed like this.

There's a lot to unpack in how this all ties in to the state of the world. The gun he obtained, it could have been done illegally, could have been through a loophole, or just given to him by someone who bought it legally. Won't really know unless the police and media find something. There is a lot of anger at police in light of all the recent videos showing the use of force, the killing of unarmed people. And on top of that there's a sense that the system is skewed toward being harsher to black and brown people - so that's just one more reason for people not to trust police, the front-line symbol of the system. Add to this the growing economic inequalities in America, the angry political climate, the fears of terrorism, and you just have really fertile ground for people to act in quick, irrational, desperate, violent ways.

I'm not saying any of this justifies killing - it doesn't - but it does explain why a person who feels, perhaps, stigmatized or victimized would want to lash out. And although we think people shouldn't do this, that they should, as you said, "step up to his failings", we don't, as a society, encourage men to share their feelings and don't give enough support to our mental health professionals and the mental health field to let them help people who are troubled, whether that's for people with serious mental issues or just trouble with their anger.

 

[Sektor]

It is always awful when people are killed like this.

There's a lot to unpack in how this all ties in to the state of the world. The gun he obtained, it could have been done illegally, could have been through a loophole, or just given to him by someone who bought it legally. Won't really know unless the police and media find something. There is a lot of anger at police in light of all the recent videos showing the use of force, the killing of unarmed people. And on top of that there's a sense that the system is skewed toward being harsher to black and brown people - so that's just one more reason for people not to trust police, the front-line symbol of the system. Add to this the growing economic inequalities in America, the angry political climate, the fears of terrorism, and you just have really fertile ground for people to act in quick, irrational, desperate, violent ways.

I'm not saying any of this justifies killing - it doesn't - but it does explain why a person who feels, perhaps, stigmatized or victimized would want to lash out. And although we think people shouldn't do this, that they should, as you said, "step up to his failings", we don't, as a society, encourage men to share their feelings and don't give enough support to our mental health professionals and the mental health field to let them help people who are troubled, whether that's for people with serious mental issues or just trouble with their anger.

No, he had obtained the weapon illegally. He is a repeat offender and was recently released from a 4 year stint in jail from trying to kill another gang member.

Judging from what I gathered from my personal sources, the individual was just an angry man. Angry at the world, angry at cops that locked him up for what he did, angry at his family, angry at just simply being, but probably because he got caught and sentenced for trying to murder someone.

I've never seen any concrete proof on any study by the Department of Justice seeking to convict solely on color with harsher penalties. Most of the convictions are based off of prior misdemeanors and convictions and even records from their juvenile files. This individual in particular said he "Wanted to kill cops". That was his motivation. Nothing more than he wanted to kill somebody.

Instead of moving on with his life after serving his time he decided to kill others for his own mistakes. I don't think there was any racial tension or motivation here. The first cops that showed up were the first he killed. He just wanted to kill cops to kill cops. Not because cops are brutalizing blacks or latinos or any other group, but because he was a felon. Further more, Felix [perpetrator] was wearing a bullet-proof vest, which felons are not allowed to own.

One of the police officers he killed was Jose Gilbert "Gil" Vega ... Vega was a 35-year veteran who was due to retire in December and had chosen to work overtime on Saturday

This guy just upsets me. He deserves no sympathy and has shown he has no qualms killing others.

 

[Esper]

Okay, so the gun was obtained illegally. Hadn't seen that in the article I read.

Anyway. Wasn't saying there was a racial element to this instance, but that, in the wider context as you asked about, there are racial issues that inform how police act, how the media portrays things, how individuals and, especially, people of color take in all this information and let it inform their actions.

It's not that I think this shooter is trying to get revenge, but that because of the way in which society in general is harsher on black and brown people it could have affected his upbringing or his previous interactions with the law. All I'm really trying to say is that there are problems and that we should address them if we want to find a way to lessen the number of incidents like this killing of two police officers.

He deserves no sympathy and has shown he has no qualms killing others.

He should certainly be punished fairly and justly. For all that I believe that there are outside issues affecting the interactions with police, once you take an action to harm another person, if you don't have a reasonable justification for doing so (such as self-defense) you have to live with the consequences.

 

[Sektor]

He should certainly be punished fairly and justly. For all that I believe that there are outside issues affecting the interactions with police, once you take an action to harm another person, if you don't have a reasonable justification for doing so (such as self-defense) you have to live with the consequences.

I agree. It is unfortunate that so many people feel the need to do so [violence] against others and not harness that anger another way and funnel it into a sport or hobby, like baking or painting or any other hobby, really. He may or may not be put to death, depending on how the 8th November rolls. If they wanted to, they could hold him until such a date and depending on what happens with Proposition 62 and Proposition 66 he may very well be sentenced to death, or at the very least, prison with no possibility of parole for life. I think the prosecution has a winning ticket in hand with the unfortunate effect Felix caused when he murdered Lesley Zerebny. Her daughter now has no mother, and what's worse is that I predict her widower will now quit the force because of this. Call it barbaric, but I don't like murderers much and think they should be locked away.

 

[Esper]

depending on what happens with Proposition 62 and Proposition 66 he may very well be sentenced to death, or at the very least, prison with no possibility of parole for life

I imagine life without parole is the minimum they'll try for. For those watching at home, here in California we have two propositions on the November ballot. Prop 62 would end the death penalty. Prop 66 would keep it and speed up the process. (Imagine the legal nightmare if they both get passed.) In your area it might make a difference to how people vote, but I have to say that I hadn't seen it covered on the news in my area so I'd guess it won't be a factor overall like it might be if it were more widely known.

 

[Sektor]

I imagine life without parole is the minimum they'll try for. For those watching at home, here in California we have two propositions on the November ballot. Prop 62 would end the death penalty. Prop 66 would keep it and speed up the process. (Imagine the legal nightmare if they both get passed.) In your area it might make a difference to how people vote, but I have to say that I hadn't seen it covered on the news in my area so I'd guess it won't be a factor overall like it might be if it were more widely known.

Too true. Those that don't know, don't vote. Personally, I'm torn on both. It's just one of those things where you cringe or recoil from the vileness of one's deeds. I wouldn't have a problem throwing the switch on a baby eating monster, but perhaps have difficulty on a lifelong gang member. If you attempt to legitimately make use of the rest of your life putting yourself out there and saying "hey, I'm the bad guy who has made lots of mistakes" then perhaps we should be a bit more lenient. But the bottom line is that those with no remorse for their actions are perhaps the worst people of all time. But that's a whole different topic in which neither side budges an inch and neither side wins. I see the draw to both sides, and that's about where I stand.

Why throw away someone when you can punish them by having them do some form of labor to better the community? I don't see anything wrong with having them opt to work for their meals (being that they have to work somewhere but they can choose). But the absolute most heinous monsters... bleh.

The Desert Sun (newspaper) tries to 'see into the past' of John Felix and tries to paint him as more than just a 'bad guy' when he's nothing but a bad guy. 1+1=2 and Felix murdered two people, without them doing anything to him. What's more to figure out there? It wouldn't have mattered who responded, he still would have shot them in cold blood.

 

[Pinkie-Dawn]

I've heard about on a radio station I listen to. When will the violence towards police officers stop?