Man allegedly attacks partner out of jealousy

A man was arrested early morning Sunday after an alleged jealous and violent outburst at his girlfriend at their residence in Chalan Kiya.

John Junior Lewis, 32, is now facing charges of assault and battery and another for disturbing the peace, and appeared before Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho yesterday for his bail hearing.

Lewis’ bail was set at $5,000 and after he waived his right to a preliminary hearing, he was ordered to return to the court on July 8 at 9am for an arraignment hearing. Office of Public Defender’s Molly Dennert will be representing Lewis and assistant attorney general Heather Barcinas will be representing the government.

Until his next appearance in court, Lewis was released from the Department of Corrections on his own recognizance, to reside with his aunty, but ordered to stay away from the victim.

According to court documents, on Sunday, June 23 2024, at about 3:28am, the Department of Public Safety Central received a call from the female victim stating her boyfriend had assaulted her at their residence in Chalan Kiya. The victim requested officers to meet her at the Mobil gas station in Chalan Kiya. At about 3:32am, a DPS officer arrived at Mobil Chalan Kiya and met with the victim who was seated inside the driver’s side of her car. According to the documents, a strong smell of alcohol filled the vehicle. The victim appeared to be scared, crying with swollen lips. Officers learned from the victim that her boyfriend had assaulted her.

The victim told officers that the night before she had attended a work party, where she remained until about 1am when she called Lewis to pick her up. The victim stated that Lewis picked her up and they returned to their residence in Chalan Kiya where he started an argument about a guy that she was talking to at the party.

The victim stated that Lewis was jealous and was very angry so they argued back and forth. After a while, she got tired of arguing so she ignored Lewis and went to sleep on their bed. The victim said that she was later awakened and disturbed by Lewis who ended up punching and slapping her multiple times. She managed to run out of the residence and leave the area with her car and call for police assistance.

The documents state that after speaking with the victim, officers summoned Emergency Medical Services to the scene at 3:44am to conduct their assessment on the victim. The victim denied further treatment and transportation to the hospital.

At about 4:05am, the victim showed officers her residence, where the incident had occurred, and after several attempts by officers asking Lewis to come out, the victim gave officers permission to enter the residence. Lewis was located in the kitchen, seated on a dining chair and appearing to be asleep. Officers then woke up Lewis and placed him in handcuffs before putting him under arrest and transporting him to DOC where he was detained until the bail hearing.

Later that Sunday, officer met with the victim for an interview. The victim said that she and Lewis had been having arguments for the past two days in regards to their relationship and her concerns with his drinking habits.