An Española City Police officer charged an Española man with two counts of felony child abuse for placing his children in a dangerous situation — having an argument with his girlfriend.
Officer Andrew O’Hara charged Mario Montemayor-Salas, 44, with the two third-degree felony counts of child abuse and a misdemeanor of battery against a household member.
O’Hara wrote in his incident report that he was sent to the Española house at 5:46 p.m. May 23, for a report of a man armed with a handgun. When he got there, he talked to Montemayor-Salas, who told him his daughters came to visit and did not like his girlfriend, 22, and that when he got home from work, he saw his daughter outside, so he went to confront her.
“Mario stated his was (sic) voicing concerns about his daughters and (the victim) was only paying attention to her phone,” O’Hara wrote. “Mario stated he took (her) phone and they began arguing with eachother (sic) and she left to go to the neighbors (sic) house.”
When he talked to the girlfriend, she said Montemayor-Salas came home from work and was complaining about her being on her phone, then grabbed her upper arms on both sides and told her to get out of the house, O’Hara wrote.
He then took her phone, grabbed her several more times and tried to push her outside, all while the children were around, he wrote. The children are ages 3 and 1.
“(The victim) stated that Mario grabbed the children and pushed her out before locking her out,” he wrote.
She then went across the street and called 911, he wrote. He did not see any visible signs of bruising on her arms.
Montemayor-Salas also admitted to having a gun in a dresser drawer, but O’Hara neither seized it nor confirmed its existence.
O’Hara then arrested Montemayor-Salas.
How, exactly, Montemayor-Salas committed child abuse is unclear. The charge requires placing someone under 18 “in a situation that may endanger his/her life or health.” O’Hara wrote that the condition that could endanger the lives of the children was “Domestic-Physical.”
Los Alamos Magistrate Judge Catherine Taylor released Montemayor-Salas on his own recognizance and a status conference is set for later this month.