Palm Springs police released video footage on Wednesday, July 15 that showed officers fatally shooting a man after he charged at them with a knife.
In the video from the May 28, 2026, incident, Captain Melissa Cain said a caller reported to police around 3:40 p.m. that a man on the 1200 block of East Palm Canyon Drive had brandished a knife at them. Police released the audio recording of that call, in which the caller said the man seemed “really strung up,” kind of waved a knife at them and was in his room with the door open.
Drone operators located the man, Gilberto Flores of Desert Hot Springs, on the second-story balcony of the location, Cain said. Drone footage shows Flores, holding a knife, pacing on the balcony and going in and out of the room. Cain said officers, including a trained crisis negotiator and a clinical behavioral therapist, tried negotiating with Flores for 40 minutes to put the knife down.
Body-worn camera footage shows Flores responding to officers as they speak with him, though it is sometimes difficult to hear what he was saying. An officer can be heard saying things like “Huh? Why are you scared?,” “I can’t hear you, can you speak up a little bit please?,” and “Hey, we can help you dude.” The officer asked him to drop the knife and Flores responded, “I’m not going to do that.”
Cain said Flores abruptly went downstairs toward officers as the incident unfolded, still holding the knife. Video footage shows the officers he approached backing away to keep their distance from him. One officer can be heard telling someone to hold on and to “give him some room.”
Flores, still with the knife, then went to the passenger side door of a patrol car, Cain said. She said officers used a taser device on Flores twice and “a less lethal 40 mm sponge round” to disarm him but it was ineffective. Video footage shows Flores holding his knife up and running toward officers.
Cain said three officers then fired at Flores with their handguns. One of the officers who appears to have shot Flores can be heard saying “God, damn it” after the shooting. Flores was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the shooting, after which the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office will review its findings. The Palm Springs Police Department will also conduct an administrative review.
Chief Andy Mills said officers had to respond with lethal force because one of them was in immediate jeopardy of being stabbed.
“It’s important for our officers to go home every night at the end of their watch to their families and unfortunately sometimes people won’t allow us to make any other decision,” Mills said.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Springs police release footage of fatal officer-involved shooting
Reporting by Ani Gasparyan, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ani Gasparyan, Palm Springs Desert Sun | USA TODAY Network
