A felon accused of threatening to kill his girlfriend and several family members with a knife in Desert Hot Springs pleaded not guilty Thursday to assault with a deadly weapon and other charges.
Juan Valentin Cortez, 36, was arraigned at the Banning Justice Center before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Alfonso Fernandez, who scheduled arraignment a felony settlement conference for May 10 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Cortez remains in custody in lieu of $20,000 bail at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta.
Along with assault with a deadly weapon, the defendant is charged with one felony count of criminal threats and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. He additionally faces sentence-enhancing allegations of using a weapon during a felony and committing a serious felony.
Officers were sent to the 66400 block of Seventh Street about 9 a.m. Sunday on a report of a domestic disturbance, according to the Desert Hot Springs Police Department.
A woman alleged that her boyfriend, later identified as Cortez, had pulled out a large hunting knife and used it to threaten her and several family members before leaving the scene.
Officers found Cortez’s truck about a mile away, but he refused to exit the vehicle, police said. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team and California Highway Patrol also went to the scene, and the suspect eventually surrendered.
Cortez has a felony conviction for carrying a concealed dirk or dagger.