Sheriff’s Deputies Restrain, Arrest Coachella Councilman

Coachella Councilman Gilbert Ramirez Jr. was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a peace officer Wednesday after scuffling with a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy who was trying to have the politician’s car towed, authorities said.

Ramirez tried to grab the baton of one deputy during the confrontation and had to be restrained by a second deputy and subdued with pepper spray before being taken into custody, sheriff’s spokesman Cpl. Dennis Gutierrez said.

The Fire Department was called to remove the pepper spray with water, and Ramirez was taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries before being taken to jail, where he posted $5,000 bail, Gutierrez said.

The incident occurred outside Ramirez’s Coachella home two hours before he was to attend a 6:30 p.m. City Council meeting in the desert farm town east of Palm Springs.

A deputy patrolling the streets to enforce the city’s abandoned-car program noticed Ramirez’s parked vehicle with expired registration tags on its license plates, Gutierrez said.

When the deputy summoned a tow truck, a woman came out of Ramirez’s home and questioned the officer, Gutierrez said. She was told the car was to be towed because its tags expired 11 months ago.

Within a few minutes, Ramirez arrived at the house and told the officer the towing “ain’t going to happen,” according to Gutierrez.

The sheriff’s deputy then called for backup.

Ramirez “was not allowing them to proceed with the impound,” Gutierrez said. “So the officer attempted an arrest.... We treated him like anyone else.”

When one of the deputies tried to place him under arrest for obstruction, Ramirez struggled with her and tried to grab her baton, Gutierrez said. The councilman was then subdued with pepper spray.

On Thursday, Ramirez blamed the deputies for the incident.

Ramirez said the deputy exacerbated a routine patrol call and triggered the confrontation by acting unprofessionally. Ramirez said he was injured during the scuffle.

The sheriff’s report on the incident has been forwarded to the Riverside County district attorney’s office for review, Gutierrez said.

A preliminary hearing for Ramirez will be scheduled by April 25 in Riverside County Superior Court in Indio.

Ramirez is a longtime resident of the city. He graduated from Coachella Valley High School and owns a nearby market in La Quinta, City Councilman Richard Macknicki said.

Coachella Mayor Jesse Villarreal said he wanted a full briefing of the incident from Chief Walt Meyer of the sheriff’s Coachella substation before he would comment on the arrest.