PALM DESERT, CA — Pretrial motions got underway Tuesday ahead of jury selection for the trial of a felon accused in a fatal knife assault on a 24-year-old Cathedral City man.
Johnny Ramirez, 34, of Escondido, allegedly joined 33-year-old Edgar Navez of Desert Hot Springs in the deadly attack on Ricardo Gallardo in 2020.
Both Ramirez and Navez are charged with first-degree murder and a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony.
Navez allegedly fled before a warrant could be served on him and has been at large since that time, his whereabouts unknown.
On Tuesday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Matthew Perantoni received motions from the prosecution and defense regarding scheduling, witnesses, evidence and other matters. The hearing was expected to continue Wednesday at the Riverside Hall of Justice, though jury selection may also begin by then.
According to the Cathedral City Police Department, on the evening of Nov. 23, 2020, Ramirez and Navez were involved in a street confrontation with Gallardo for reasons not entirely clear in the area of Avenida Del Yermo and Ramon Road.
During the conflict, a physical struggle ensued, and the defendants allegedly pulled knives, prompting Gallardo to try to run away, police alleged.
Security surveillance video cameras mounted outside several businesses caught some of the alleged assault, recording the victim running and the defendants close on his heels, according to police.
They allegedly stabbed him multiple times, mainly in the stomach, according to the prosecution.
Witnesses who heard the commotion called 911, and patrol officers converged on the area minutes later. Gallardo was clinging to life.
He was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, where he died that night.
As Ramirez and Navez were allegedly fleeing on foot, the latter dropped his mobile phone in front of a store, whose clerk spotted it on the sidewalk after passers-by began gathering around the mortally wounded victim. Police said the man pointed it out to patrol officers, who seized it and turned it over to homicide detectives.
A search warrant was issued to access the phone's contents, and detectives uncovered a video allegedly showing Ramirez driving a vehicle, with Navez in the passenger seat, eight minutes prior to the deadly attack. Other videos also allegedly showed Navez and Ramirez posing with handguns and flashing gang signs.
The investigation required extensive work to identify the alleged perpetrators.
Ramirez was ultimately arrested without incident on Aug. 8, 2023, in Escondido. Navez is described as 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighing 160 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes.
Details on Ramirez's prior conviction, which did not occur in Riverside County, were unavailable.
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