A Cathedral City man attempted to stab a police officer responding to a family disturbance in late July, according to a video of the altercation released by the Cathedral City Police Department.
The video shows Officer Marcus Ayala walking up to the front door of a residence on Pueblo Trail in Cathedral City at around 3:11 p.m. on July 27 before a man police identified as Juan Francisco Sosa Jr., 30, rushes out with a kitchen knife and tries to stab him in the chest.
In the video, Ayala lunges into Sosa, pushing him into the wall as a woman runs outside and tries to stop Sosa from repeatedly stabbing the officer. The knife repeatedly hits Ayala’s Kevlar vest, failing to penetrate the skin on most attempts.
CCPD Commaner Jon Enos said Ayala suffered only minor injuries and returned to duty shortly after the incident.
“If it wasn’t for the vest that he was wearing, it definitely would have had a different result,” he said. “It was kind of a routine call, something that we go to normally. This is one of those incidents that is a reminder of how quickly things can change.”
The video shows another officer running up to the fight and helping Ayala pin Sosa to the ground and a woman inside the house leaning over to get the knife out of Sosa’s hand.
Police arrested Sosa, who was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside, where he is being held without bail. The attack was previously reported by KESQ.
He has been charged with a felony, attempted murder of a peace officer, and has pleaded not guilty.
Sosa is scheduled for a bail review and felony settlement conference on Wednesday, Sept. 3. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sam Morgen covers the city of Palm Springs for The Desert Sun. Reach him at smorgen@gannett.com.
