The Riverside County Department of Animal Services found the ducks Tuesday after investigating overcrowding conditions at a property in unincorporated Riverside County, according to the agency. The birds were taken to the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus, where officials urgently called on the public and rescue organizations to help place them beginning Wednesday.

According to a social media update from the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus, all 480 ducks have been rescued or adopted, marking one of the largest single intake-and-placement efforts for the department in over a decade.

“This large-scale operation required extensive teamwork and coordination across our department,” Riverside County officials said in the social media update.

Animal service officials were not available to explain who had adopted the animals and whether they were adopted as pets or food. But Daniel Markichevich told KABC that he and his fiancée Savannah Burgardt visited the San Jacinto shelter on Wednesday and planned on adopting 20 ducks for their San Jacinto property.

“We have a 3.5-acre farm, so they will just go right into the area and enjoy, and we’ll get out there and look at them, eat their eggs and have a whole full life for them,” said Markichevich, who recently completed construction on a pond in their backyard.

An animal sanctuary in Vacaville, dubbed the Funky Chicken Rescue, took in eight of the ducks, according to a social media post.

Officials said the original owner of the ducks had intended to create a sanctuary for the animals but animal control officers ultimately determined that conditions required intervention, citing improper husbandry and concerns about the number of birds being housed.

Before taking in the ducks, the animal services agency coordinated with the California Department of Food and Agriculture to test a sample of the ducks for zoonotic diseases, according to the county. All results came back negative but early assessments indicated the birds had not received adequate care, according to authorities.

“Overcrowding can contribute to stress and decreased immune function,” Itzel Vizcarra, chief veterinarian for the county animal services agency, said in a statement. “Inadequate nutrition, particularly vitamin A deficiency, can impair the lining of the digestive tract, predisposing birds to inflammation and secondary illness.”

The swift placement effort was supported in part by community donations, including more than 70 bags of waterfowl feed provided by a local business, according to the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus.

While the ducks now have new homes, officials said the investigation into overcrowding conditions at the original property is ongoing.

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The second panel consisted of Barona’s Chairman Raymond Welch, Chairman Vivanco, Chairwoman Erica M. Pinto of the Jamul Indian Village of California, Barona Fire Chief Ken Kremensky and Pechanga Fire Chief Jason Keeling.

“We stand here in the shadow of the 2003 fires that burned 90% of our reservation including 39 homes,” Welch said. “Our history on this 8,000-acre reservation is one of endurance but today that endurance is being tested by an insurance crisis that threatens our financial sovereignty for those of us living in high-risk areas. We now face a fire of a different kind—an economic one. This land is our past and our future. We continue to use our traditional knowledge and modern technology to keep us safe and we will fight to ensure that insurance costs never force a single member to leave their home.”

Vivanco said that through partnerships and the establishment of the Soboba Fire Department, the Soboba reservation’s public protection classification has gone from 3 to 2, which should mitigate the cost of insurance as it helps protect against fires in the area.

The ISO Public Protection Classification (PPC) in California rates fire department effectiveness on a 1-10 scale (1 best, 10 worst) based on dispatch, staffing, water supply, and community risk reduction. Lower scores usually yield lower insurance premiums but that has not been reflected for homeowners living on the Soboba Reservation.

“Our Tribe has been fortunate enough to purchase a bulldozer to create our own fire breaks; we go out yearly and take on that task with our fire department and Public Works crew,” Vivanco said. “We look to this committee and the state for support in helping our endeavors in achieving affordable home insurance so we can continue to build new homes on the lands that we are, I would say, forced to live on.”

As Ramos pointed out in his opening statement, the lands that Tribal communities sit on were not chosen. “Historic state and federal policies forced Indian people to live in the most secluded and rural areas of California,” he said.

“We embrace those lands because they are our communities,” Vivanco said. “We have done the work to create and maintain a safe environment to make sure that our homeowners can go out and hopefully achieve affordable insurance to protect their homes and their resources and yet we are still not seeing that.”

He would like to see the insurance providers visit the reservation and talk to the fire and Public Works departments to see the efforts that have been made to mitigate the risk of fire. “I look forward to further discussions where hopefully we can come to some type of resolution where the state and the Tribes can all be on the same page, working with insurance companies to ensure we have the ability to obtain insurance as it was meant to be,” Vivanco said.

Chairwoman Pinto voiced her concern that as the cost of insurance premiums rise, it strains Tribal budgets and can deter investment in critical infrastructure. “Insurance insecurity also translates to broader social and cultural consequences,” she said. “Home ownership and Tribal community housing are essential to Tribal sovereignty as Tribal housing can anchor cultural continuity, ensure intergenerational knowledge transfer and engender a stable family life. When insurance becomes prohibitively expensive or unavailable, Tribal members may be forced to seek housing outside our communities, undermining efforts to revitalize our Tribal homeland and traditions. Tribal cultural sites, ceremonial spaces and ancestral landscapes require protection that extends beyond simple rebuilding costs.”

Mitigation efforts were outlined by the two fire chiefs that were present. Ramos introduced the third panel members, State Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and Seren Taylor, who serves as Vice President for the Personal Insurance Federation of California. Lara discussed some of the legislation that is being presented that will hopefully resolve many of the issues brought to light at the hearing. He also suggested more meetings to discuss ongoing problems that Tribes are having with securing affordable insurance.

Vivanco said Soboba was rated in the top 2,000 of the 40,000 communities that were included in the latest PPC report. “We’ve always been taught to be good stewards of our lands that we have and that is part of it, making sure that we can mitigate the risk of fires to protect our reservation at the same time,” he said. He is hoping the insurance companies can appreciate the extra efforts they make and offer quality insurance at a decent rate. “I think that’s what we’re not getting and it’s frustrating because Tribes put in a lot of resources to these efforts,” Vivanco said. “Tribes are doing what’s right and always will.”

Ramos was in total agreement and said the point that was being established is that Tribal governments use their own assets to protect their homes against fires and natural disasters and the mitigation efforts they take on are benefiting the surrounding communities as well. Yet Tribal governments are not given credit for spending their own assets to help mitigate more than just their own lands. Instead, they are penalized with high insurance premiums.

“The purpose of this committee is to gain understanding and make sure California’s First Peoples are included in the equation when we take information back to the state legislature,” Ramos said.

To view the hearing in its entirety, please visit: https://www.assembly.ca.gov/media/assembly-select-committee-native-american-affairs-20260313.

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After a loss prevention employee reported the suspected theft, the Murrieta Police Department was called to the hardware store, the department said.

As the suspect was about to get into his truck in the parking lot, he saw the officers arriving, police said. The suspect then ran back inside the Home Depot, leading officers on a chase and a game of hide and seek, officers wrote on Instagram Friday.

“Officers noticed a pair of shoes sticking up behind the Hampton Bay boxes — the most obvious place to conceal oneself,” the post read.

The man, who was not publicly identified, was taken into custody, according to the Murrieta police department.

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Officers responded to a report of a pedestrian being struck by a vehicle around 5:35 p.m. Saturday, in the area of Domenigoni Parkway and State Street, where they located a deceased man in the roadway, according to the Hemet Police Department.

The bicyclist was later identified as 75-year-old Kenneth Lauer of Hemet.

Several bystanders reported that the driver fled, but provided officers with a vehicle description and direction of travel. Police located and tried to pull it over, but the driver allegedly refused to yield, prompting a pursuit of about three minutes, according to HPD.

The driver was subsequently arrested and booked into the Riverside County Jail. Neither a name or description of the motorist was released.

Investigators said the pedestrian was riding on Domenigoni when he was struck by the eastbound vehicle. They believe intoxication may be a factor in the crash.

Domenigoni Parkway was closed from State Street to Searl Parkway from about 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for the investigation.

Anyone with additional information regarding this crash was encouraged to contact Corporal Christian Coley at 951-765-2400.

— City News Service

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The father, who was inside a post office, was arrested, according to The Press Enterprise.

On June 17, officers responded to a call of a baby alone in a vehicle with the engine off and windows up, The Corona Police Department said in a statement.

Upon arrival to the post office at 414 W. Grand Blvd. at 5:36 p.m., officers discovered the baby inside “in distress.” Footage posted to the department’s Instagram page shows an officer breaking the front window with a baton, while another unlocked the back door to rescue the infant from the backseat.

The Corona Fire Department used a thermo-device and told officers that the internal temperature of the vehicle was 110 degrees.

Officers then found the father inside the post office and arrested him, The Press-Enterprise reported.

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The massive operation consisted of 500 personnel and took place in Thermal, a rural city in Riverside County near Coachella, according to the DEA. The federal agency said the task force included the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Patrol, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, FBI and the National Guard.

The DEA posted on social media that it requested help from the agencies and the Army because of the “magnitude and topography of this operation.” A DEA spokesperson said the mission was aimed at illegal marijuana farms spanning about 787 acres in the Coachella Valley town.

“The operation is authorized by federal search warrants signed by a federal magistrate judge,” the DEA wrote on X.

Federal agents arrested between 70 and 75 undocumented immigrants and one U.S. citizen for impeding law enforcement.

Multiple people are being questioned for their possible involvement in the marijuana grow operation.

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The man, whose age and identity were not released, was contacted by police officers shortly after 6:30 a.m. Friday. They were summoned to a McDonald’s in the 7400 block of Indiana Avenue after employees at the fast-food chain called about a man who had locked himself inside the restroom and was not responding.

“The business requested prosecution for trespassing, and when officers arrived, they had the man exit the restroom,” according to the Riverside Police Department. “The man became combative and force was used to detain him.”

While being treated by paramedics, the man “remained combative” before going into medical distress, the Riverside Police Department said.

“He was transported to a local hospital where medical staff provided treatment for over an hour,” the law enforcement agency said. “Despite their efforts, the man later died.”

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office are assisting with the death investigation.

No further details were released.

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Jason Walsh of Murrieta died as a result of the crash. His identity was shared after notification of the next of kin.

The crash was reported at 1:12 a.m. Monday at Domenigoni Parkway and Red Root Road, near Menifee, according to the California Highway Patrol.

A witness told authorities that a white pickup truck was blocking the road and debris was scattered on the roadway.

Walsh was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.

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RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A proposed county-operated $580 million wellness center received final approval Tuesday from the Riverside County Board of Supervisors.

With the signoff, construction of the 19.4-acre Riverside University Health System’s Wellness Village campus will begin in June at the intersection of Harvill and Placentia avenues in Mead Valley.

Slated for completion in 2026, the village will offer primary and specialty medical care, dental services, substance use disorder services, and a pharmacy, as well as onsite respite for families.

A crisis residential behavioral health center for children and a Children’s Mental Health Urgent Care—both firsts in Riverside County — are planned, as are social services such as WIC, job training and educational services.

“This project is unlike anything else that’s been done. It will be a place where individuals of all ages can access a range of services in an environment designed to foster healing, community interaction and overall wellbeing,” said Dr. Matthew Chang, Behavioral Health Director for RUHS. “In terms of behavioral health treatment approaches, we are breaking new ground.”

First District Supervisor Kevin Jeffries said the RUHS Wellness Village represents a major shift in healthcare delivery and will serve as a model for the state.

“By centralizing and enhancing access to healthcare, such as pediatric behavioral health services, we’re ensuring that families no longer need to travel out of county for essential care,” Jeffries said.

The project is expected to create hundreds of permanent jobs and generate millions of dollars in taxes and spending, according to county officials.

The center is being developed in partnership with a nonprofit corporation — P3 Riverside Holdings, LLC. The financing plan includes the issuance of tax-exempt bonds and the county entering into a long-term ground lease and facilities agreement with the nonprofit.

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