Palm Springs Resident Accused Of Fatal Shooting To Stand Trial

PALM SPRINGS, CA — A Palm Springs resident accused of fatally shooting a man in Desert Hot Springs in 2022 must stand trial on a murder charge, a judge ruled Wednesday.

Richard Douglas Taylor Jr., 33, was held to answer Wednesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio. He previously pleaded not guilty to a felony murder count — which includes a sentence-enhancing allegation of discharging a firearm causing great bodily injury, according to case records.

The defendant is due back in court for a post-preliminary hearing arraignment on Jan. 22, case records indicated.

At 11:45 a.m. on Nov. 25, 2022, officers responded to the 11000 block of Cactus Drive on reports of a shooting, according to Detective Sgt. Christopher Saucier of the Desert Hot Springs Police Department.

Saucier said that, upon arrival, officers found a man with multiple gunshot wounds. The man, identified in court documents only as Daniel A., died at the scene.

On Dec. 8, 2022, detectives executed search and arrest warrants in Palm Springs with the Riverside County District Attorney's Office Gang Impact Team, according to Saucier.

Taylor was arrested and subsequently booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside, initially held on $1 million bail. His custody status was not immediately available.

According to court records, Taylor previously pleaded guilty on Feb. 24, 2014, to one felony count of burglary and one misdemeanor count of willfully resisting.

— City News Service