Crime & Safety
RivCo Man Accused Of Killing Dad During Confrontation Appears In Court
The defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Robert Presley Jail.
RIVERSIDE, CA — A Riverside man accused of fatally stabbing his father during a confrontation at the senior's home pleaded not guilty Thursday to murder and other charges.
David Estevan Rendon, 37, was arrested in September following a Riverside Police Department investigation into the slaying of 74-year-old Crispin Rendon.
Along with murder, David Rendon is charged with a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony.
Find out what's happening in Banning-Beaumontfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
He was arraigned Thursday before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Gail O'Rane, who scheduled a felony settlement conference for July 20 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
The defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Robert Presley Jail.
Find out what's happening in Banning-Beaumontfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
During his initial court appearance last October, Rendon's public defender requested that his case be referred to the Riverside County Department of Behavioral Health for psychological evaluations, aimed at gauging whether the defendant was mentally fit, or should be placed on diversion and possibly committed to a state mental hospital.
Following doctors' reports submitted to the court in March, no grounds for hospital commitment were established, and the matter was scheduled for criminal proceedings again.
According to former police spokesman Officer Ryan Railsback, shortly after 4 p.m. on Sept. 27, there was an unspecified confrontation between the defendant and his father in the latter's house in the 3400 block of Bahia Place, near Watkins Drive, just north of UC Riverside.
"The preliminary investigation indicates the suspect may have been experiencing a mental health crisis when he attacked and stabbed Mr. Rendon multiple times," Railsback said at the time.
Patrol officers and paramedics summoned to the property discovered the victim lying in the driveway, mortally wounded. He was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where he died that evening.
David Rendon barricaded himself inside the house, refusing officers' commands to surrender over a two-hour span, according to Railsback.
"He eventually gave up to SWAT officers and was safely taken into custody," Railsback said.
No one was injured during the standoff and arrest.
Rendon has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.
