Court records detail Jones’ dismissed 2010 domestic violence case

By Donovan Quintero and Krista Allen
Navajo Times

WINDOW ROCK

Presidential candidate Justin Jones was charged in 2010 with battery against a household member and interference with communications following an altercation with his wife. The case was dismissed after he was accepted into a district attorney’s domestic violence diversion program, according to San Juan County court records obtained by the Navajo Times.

Jones, an attorney and former judge, led the July 21 primary and faces Crystalyne Curley in the Nov. 3 general election. His campaign manager, Lyn Zah, sent the Navajo Times a statement from Jones Oct. 7.

“Charges stemming from an April 2010 altercation with my wife in Farmington were dismissed after the San Juan County prosecutor interviewed myself and my wife,” Jones said.

The statement did not mention the diversion program.

The court’s register of actions shows the charges were dismissed without prejudice Oct. 1, 2010, after Jones was accepted into the 11th Judicial District Attorney’s Domestic Violence Pre-Prosecution Diversion Program. The charges were to be refiled if he was terminated before completing the program.

The Farmington-based district attorney’s office administers the program under New Mexico’s Pre-Prosecution Diversion Act. Under the law, defendants may participate for six months to two years while meeting conditions set by the district attorney. Participants who fail to comply can be terminated from the program and face prosecution.

The court records reviewed by the Navajo Times do not show whether Jones completed the program or not. No refiled charges appear in the case record.

Farmington police were called to the couple’s home at 2:07 a.m. April 9, 2010. According to a statement of probable cause filed by Farmington Patrolman Ryan Brown, the call reported that Jones’ wife had been hit in the face with a fist.

The officer noted a scratch on her forehead and a broken frame on her prescription glasses. She declined medical treatment and said she was not badly hurt. A corporal photographed her injuries and the glasses.

Her account changed during the interview, the officer wrote. She initially said Jones hit her with a fist, then described an open-hand push. She initially said they had only one physical fight in 20 years of marriage but later described six or seven recent fights.

She said an argument began about 10:30 p.m. April 8 over their son’s grades. She told officers Jones struck her face with his palm, pushed her and held her on the bed for about 10 minutes. When she wanted to call police, he took the phone and put it in his pocket, she said. He also took the car keys to prevent her from leaving, according to her account.

She waited three to four hours to call police because she worried about ruining her husband’s career, according to the report.

Jones waived his Miranda rights and told the officer his wife had been physically violent with him before, including an incident in December 2009.

He said she approached him in the bedroom, and he raised his hands in defense. She fell into his open hands, breaking her glasses and scratching her face, he said. He also said she told him to hit her, but he did not.

Jones acknowledged taking the phone and car keys. He said it was his work phone, and his wife had her own phone. He said he did not want her to leave while she was “acting hysterical.”

Both told officers they later talked while lying on the bed. Jones said he believed they had resolved the disagreement.

Jones was booked into the San Juan County Detention Center. Bond was listed at $600 on each charge.

His release conditions barred contact with his wife except to discuss child visitation and paying bills, according to handwritten changes to the order. The changes also allowed him to travel outside San Juan County and New Mexico.

Jones pleaded not guilty at his April 13 arraignment before Magistrate Judge Stanley R. King. Assistant District Attorney Cheyenne Kiernan entered the case for the state later that month.

Defense counsel twice sought delays in May, citing hearings in other courts. King granted one and denied the other. In July, the court granted a 60-day continuance while Jones applied to the diversion program.

Jones said the couple chose counseling.

“At the time, we opted to have counseling to help our marriage regrow its strength and heal with each other,” he said. “Healing from that evening has taken dedication, time, prayer, love and forgiveness.”

Jones did not specify whether the counseling was part of the diversion program.

“While the altercation was between two adults, our family household was affected,” Jones said.

He said the couple has been married 35 years and will mark their 36th anniversary in two months. Their three children are building academic and professional careers, he said.

“Family violence is never condoned but we all face challenges that can lead to families engaging negatively with one another,” Jones said.

He said no further charges or altercations have followed. He said the family also helps others who have experienced family violence.

“We believe people can change and must be afforded that opportunity to grow as a loving human being,” Jones said.

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