A San Jose jury has convicted Rev. Ray Fitzgerald Montgomery of misdemeanor domestic violence for a 2024 attack at his home, landing a prominent local faith leader in rare and very public legal trouble.
Attack, trial and sentencing
According to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, as reported by NBC Bay Area, Montgomery picked up the 42-year-old woman at his home, dragged her down a hallway and began to strangle her by pressing her neck between his forearm and bicep. Authorities say she managed to run away, hide in a bathroom and call for help, then sought medical care at Stanford Hospital the following day.
Jurors spent about three hours deliberating before returning the guilty verdict. Montgomery is scheduled to be sentenced on September 8 in Department 45 of the Hall of Justice in San Jose, where a judge will decide what this misdemeanor conviction means for his immediate future.
Background
Montgomery is the former executive director of People Acting in Community Together (PACT), a faith-rooted community organizing group in San Jose. Before criminal charges were filed, he sued the woman for defamation, a civil action first reported by San José Spotlight.
Legal implications
Because the jury found Montgomery guilty of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense, the fallout may extend beyond whatever sentence he receives in Santa Clara County. Federal law bars anyone convicted of a qualifying misdemeanor domestic violence offense from possessing firearms under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), legal resources note.
Locally, Montgomery’s sentencing in Department 45 will determine county-level penalties. The Hall of Justice lists Department 45 among its criminal courtrooms in downtown San Jose, where the case will officially reach its next chapter.
