The first to take the stand on day three of the “People v. Felix” was retired Palm Springs Police Officer Abraham Vargas. Vargas was one of two officers who responded to the home of John Hernandez Felix before Felix started shooting, killing Palm Springs Police Officers Jose ‘Gil’ Vega and Lesley Zerebny, and injuring a third.

Vargas told Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Manny Bustamante he just transferred to the department in July of 2016 from the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department and Officer Vega had been his field training officer.

“We had a good bond,” said Vargas.

He said that’s why it caught his attention when Officer Vega called for units to standby, “When he asked for additional units, it was different.”

So instead of standing by he and Officer Jefferey Burton headed to the scene.

Vargas says when he got to the home Officers Vega and Zerebny were speaking to Felix’s mother Margarita, and she told him in Spanish, “ ‘Don’t do anything to my son,’ just allow her to leave,” and, ‘he has a weapon,’ ” adding then Officer Vega led the way to the front door, followed by Officer Zerebny, with Officers Burton and him following behind, and next to him was Margarita.

He says he was trying to get her to tell him what kind of weapon Felix had, “She couldn’t tell me, then shots began to be fired.”

Then Bustamante played the radio traffic from the shooting.

Among the chatter you hear Vargas yelling, “Shots, shots,shots, 1199, 1199,” code for officer down.

Officer Vega and Officer Zerebny’s families started sobbing.

Vargas says this all happened n seconds and he ran for cover to the side of the home ,“Officer Vega fell down, he was shot in the head and Officer Zerebny was going to take cover,” adding he saw Officer Zerebny get hit, “she got shot in the back, and she collapsed … she just collapsed … I knew she was dead.”

Then he says Officer Vega ran towards him and he was bleeding he told Vega to stay back that he had him covered, “He just looked at me and walked out of cover and engaged,” adding, “that’s when I observed him take two more shots to the torso.”

Vargas then says he ran to get his rifle to provide cover fire so other officers could get Officer Vega and Zerebny out of there.

“We were just getting sprayed,” said Vargas.

He says the cover fire gave he was providing his colleagues gave them time to get them to safety.

Vargas says that during the shooting he never saw Felix, “It was a coward move because he was shooting from inside the house.”

Felix’s attorney John Patrick Dolan asked Vargas to describe if he could make out the gibberish he heard Felix shouting when he arrived on scene, if he sounded angry, and if he ever saw Felix shooting.

Vargas said he could not make out the gibberish or if Felix was angry and Vargas repeated he never saw Felix.

Vargas said he was not physically hurt during the shooting but he is now medically retired from the Palm Springs Police Department.

Day Three: People v. Felix: Officers Who Survived Shooting Testify