Morongo Valley Cookie Company owner receives $7500 settlement from MVCSD after alleged assault

The nearly yearlong litigation between Morongo Cookie Company owner Christopher Cross and Morongo Valley Community Services District (MVCSD) Finance Director Johnny Tolbert finally came to an official close last night, where Cross is being awarded $7500 despite no charges filed against Tolbert for the alleged assault at 2025’s Operation Gobble Gobble holiday turkey giveaway on November 23. The settlement comes from the Special District Risk Management Authority (SDRMA) with whom the MVCSD is contracted.

“SDRMA has issued the settlement payment and advised it will invoice the district $7500 under the district’s $25,000 per occurrence deductible,” said President Christina Gorke.

During Johnny Tolbert’s Director report, he mentioned that no charges were filed against him and that the “case was closed.”

“Regarding the incident of alleged assault between me and Mr. Cross and the charge he attempted to file, the DA has decided no charges would be filed and the case is closed,” said Tolbert. 

Cross was in attendance at the meeting, but when approached for comment he declined. 

When the MVCSD first publicly addressed the incident at a meeting on January 15 with Cross present, Cross demanded Tolbert resign and, in the meantime, “he was not gonna stop” the lawsuit. Tolbert retorted that Cross had “basically attacked board members, attacked district staff, then came to a meeting and said that he was going to make money off the district.”

In other action items, Justin Merino of the Desert Region Fire Safe (DRFS) proposed an expanded partnership with the MVCSD that would designate the DRFS’s Fire Station 2 as a backup fire station for the Morongo Valley Fire Department (MVFD). Merino spoke to the Board, stating there would be a “zero ask for financial support” from the MVCSD, intending to fund it through their non-profit and through a California Edison grant.

Merino said this would be a “mutual aid agreement,” where DRFS would take care of staffing and recruitment of volunteer firefighters limited to exterior firefighting as designated by the MVFD with no patient transport since that is prohibited from their insurance. Merino emphasized they would not self-deploy and only take command from the MVFD as needed. While the board was supportive of the expanded partnership, they decided no action would be taken until further details were obtained on the liability of the expansion.