Jury selection commenced Monday in the trial of James “Chip” Milton Nathaniel, a 39-year-old Beaumont resident. Nathaniel is accused of the 2015 killing of 35-year-old Apolonio Carranza in Indio, an incident that allegedly occurred after Carranza crashed into Nathaniel’s Porsche SUV.
Nathaniel faces multiple charges, including first-degree murder, being a felon in possession of a firearm, witness intimidation, and spousal abuse. The charges also include sentence-enhancing allegations related to gun use and great bodily injury.
Pretrial motions for the case started last week. Riverside County Superior Court Judge Otis Sterling summoned various panels of prospective jurors to the Larson Justice Center in Indio on Monday to conduct screening for their availability and qualifications. Opening statements in the trial are expected to begin on Thursday.
The People v. Nathaniel stands out as one of the Riverside County court system’s oldest unresolved murder cases, having been delayed repeatedly over the past decade. Court records indicate these delays are attributable to several factors, including Nathaniel’s changes in legal counsel, ongoing requests for case dismissals, and hearings to access confidential records belonging to law enforcement officers. Other unspecified matters also contributed to the postponements following his arrest in May 2015.
At the time of the confrontation with Carranza, Nathaniel had been out of prison for less than a year. Court records show he was released in the early spring of 2014, having completed a sentence for a 2005 attack in Indio where a motorist was shot.
According to the Indio Police Department, the events leading to Carranza’s death unfolded in the predawn hours of April 19, 2015. Nathaniel, Carranza, and multiple other individuals had been visiting a house located in the 43000 block of Kenya Drive. Witnesses later told police that an argument erupted between Nathaniel and Carranza, though the specific reasons for the dispute were not entirely clear at the time.
A police arrest warrant declaration details that one witness reported Carranza challenged Nathaniel to race for the “pink slips” to their respective SUVs. Following this challenge, Carranza then allegedly rammed Nathaniel’s Porsche.
The affidavit states that an enraged Nathaniel then allegedly pulled a handgun and opened fire on Carranza, who was seated behind the wheel of his Nissan Murano. Police allege that a dozen shots were fired at close range, resulting in Carranza’s death at the scene.
Nathaniel then allegedly got into his SUV and drove away. Witnesses called 911, and patrol officers arrived at the scene less than ten minutes later. Nathaniel's identity was publicly released four days after the shooting, and he was taken into custody without incident in San Bernardino on May 21, 2015. He is currently being held at the Benoit Detention Center in lieu of $1 million bail.