Riverside County Sheriff's Department - Coachella Station

If you, a loved one or a family member have been arrested by or are being investigated by the Coachella Police Department / Riverside Sheriff’s Department operating in Coachella, it can cause insomnia, mostly just from worrying about what will happen or can happen.  Moreover, one is dependent upon the honesty, accuracy and competence of a deputy sheriff, who may or may not be experienced or have the same sense of urgency as you in having the police report properly written.  

Facing such a situation, knowing the bail amount (if any) associated with the offense or offenses at issue if police deny an own recognizance (OR) release may lower the stress.  It is also good to know what evidence is needed to convict one for the crime or crimes that allegedly took place, the defenses possible and the sentence a judge can impose if one is convicted of the crime or crimes.  

We at Greg Hill & Associates believe it is prudent to know a few more things before interacting with any branch of law enforcement.  It can be smart to know the size of the police or sheriff’s department, the area’s demographics, a bit of history about the town, city or area, and the most common types of crimes the department investigates to make one’s communication with law enforcement more meaningful, more savvy and perhaps, more respectful.  This can lead to a better outcome than if one lacks such perspective and makes assumptions that may be wrong.

This article is presented with these goals in mind.

The City of Coachella contracts with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department to provide law enforcement services for Coachella.  In other words, Coachella does not have its own police department.  The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department station for Coachella Police Department is small force with thirty-two sworn police officers and an undisclosed number of civilian support personnel also assigned to it.  

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Station in Coachella is responsible for patrolling the City of Coachella, a city of 30.08 square miles.
Coachella today is one of California's fastest-growing cities.  When it was incorporated in 1946, it had 1,000 residents.  By the 2020 Census, the population had grown to 41,941.  The city is officially bilingual in English and Spanish, with 90% of people speaking Spanish.

The elevation is sixty-eight feet below sea level, as the eastern half of the Coachella Valley is below sea level.  The saltwater lake, Salton Sea, ten miles south of Coachella, is 228 feet below sea level.

Coachella is well-known for its annual music festival (Greg Hill’s kids and his wife attended this festival for several years in a row) which started in 1993 (31 years ago!).  In 1993, Pearl Jam performed at the Empire Polo Club while boycotting venues controlled by Ticketmaster.  The show validated the site's viability for hosting large events, leading to the inaugural Coachella Festival being held over the course of two days in October 1999.  After no event was held in 2000, Coachella returned on an annual basis beginning in April 2001 as a single-day event.  In 2002, the festival reverted to a two-day format.  Coachella was expanded to a third day in 2007 and eventually a second weekend in 2012; it is now held on consecutive three-day weekends in April, with the same lineup each weekend.

For arrests along the Interstate 10 (I-10) or State Routes 86 or 111 crossing Coachella, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) will normally handle this work, although one may be thereafter transported to the police station in Thermal for processing (Coachella does not have a separate police station), a breath test (if a DUI) and booking.  The person may also be held at the Thermal jail or the John J. Benoit Correctional Facility in Indio until bail is posted or the person is transferred to the Riverside County Jail, also called the Robert Presley Detention Center in downtown Riverside.

As of 2010, Coachella’s population was 2.3% non-Hispanic white, 0.7% Asian, 0.8% African American and 96.4% Hispanic.

Most cases arising out of the Coachella Police Department’s areas of responsibility are brought at the Indio Courthouse, but some are also brought at the Riverside Hall of Justice at 4100 Main Street in downtown Riverside.  Cases that may be filed at the Riverside Hall of Justice instead of at the Indio Courthouse would be very serious cases needing specialized prosecutors trained in handling such cases.

Over the last 25 years, our office has handled one case arising out of Coachella and brought in the Indio Courthouse.  However, we would expect cases in Coachella to vary from DUI to domestic violence, to shoplifting, to possession and / or sales of a controlled substance.  

While we have not handled many cases out of Coachella, we have received phone calls from people in Coachella asking about hiring a criminal defense attorney.  We find that locals to the Coachella often distrust local criminal defense attorneys as being social friends with prosecutors and judges, so they are unwilling to fight too hard to preserve their friendships, so we are considered as counsel instead because we presumably have no such ties or loyalties.

Areas Served:  City of Coachella

Below is the Google Map to the Riverside Coachella Station.