Man on Probation Due to Prison Realignment Accused of Attempted Murder

San Bernardino County Sheriff’s officials reported today that a man who was released from custody because of the prison realignment program is back behind bars, this time accused of attempted murder.

Highland/Loma Linda Sheriff’s deputies arrested Richard Holguin, 46, of San Bernardino, at a home in Highland. Officials said he had an outstanding felony/no bail warrant. He was booked at Central Detention Center.

Authorities said that at 10:47 p.m. on March 9, Holguin went to a home in the 11000 block of Bryant Street in Yucaipa and confronted two men. He demanded money for an unpaid debt, according to a news release.

An argument ensued. During the fight, sheriff’s officials said Holguin, who was known to the victims only as Ritchie Rich, pulled out a handgun and opened fire as they stood at the door of their residence. Both were shot in the upper body, officials said.

The men were rushed to a hospital and survived their injuries, officials said.

The gunman fled in a blue, full-size truck, officials said. An extensive search of the area was done, but a suspect was not found.

On March 10, detectives from the Yucaipa station spotted a man fitting his description leaving a home in the 7000 block of Newbury Avenue in Highland. The suspect entered a blue, Chevrolet, full-size truck and drove away, officials said.

With the assistance of deputies from the Highland/Loma Linda area, the man was stopped at gunpoint and his identity confirmed, officials said.

Investigators learned that Holguin had been on supervised probation for felony battery on a peace officer with injury. His release was a result of California Assembly Bill 109, part of Governor Jerry Brown's Realignment Plan to comply with a U.S. Supreme Court Decision requiring the state to lower its prison population by 30,000.

The bill allows offenders with non-violent, non-sexual and non-serious convictions to serve reduced sentences in county jails and be placed on local supervision through county Probation.