Deputy Noe Avila, 43, was arrested around midnight Monday on a first-degree felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon-family violence, according to the station. He's accused of beating a woman inside a home and threatening her with a handgun, according to BCSO statement cited in the story.
Corporal Leroy Martinez, 25, was arrested last Tuesday on a felony charge of assault-family-choking/strangulation and is now free after posting a $20,000 bond, according to KSAT. He's accused of squeezing a former girlfriend's neck until she "couldn’t see or hear for several seconds,” according to a warrant obtained by KSAT.
According to the warrant cited by KSAT, the alleged victim said the BCSO corporal had choked her "3-4 times in the past."
Avila, a 19-year veteran of the sheriff's office, was arrested while driving southbound in the northbound lanes of Highway 16 South in Atascosa County, the station reports, citing BCSO information. No bond has yet been set in his case.
“I’m absolutely disgusted by the behavior in this case. [Avila] showed no mercy to his victim, and this administration will show no mercy to him in the handling of the case," Sheriff Javier Salazar said in a statement released Monday to KSAT. "I have zero tolerance for family violence, and I am equally committed to working with the District Attorney to ensure criminal accountability, but more importantly ensure justice for the victim. I have all intentions of removing him from this agency as soon as allowable in the disciplinary process.”
BCSO has already served Martinez, a four-year veteran, with termination papers, and he's on administrative leave while officials finalize his firing, KSAT reports. A prehearing in his case is scheduled for Aug. 16, according to court records.
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