By Simran Bhatt
Woodland – A man was found guilty of corporal injury, false imprisonment without violence, assault by force, theft, dissuading a witness or victim, and bribery of a witness. However, he was acquitted by a jury of 2nd-degree robbery and stalking.
The first witness of the case, Deputy Aaron Forester, reported on a domestic violence disturbance between the defendant, Carlos Gallo Ayala, and his wife on April 28, 2019. That afternoon, the wife had called 911 after seeing her husband allegedly removing items from her vehicle. She claimed he shoved her from behind and she screamed. Before his wife called the police department, her prior phone calls had asked for an emergency protective order. She feared if she did not obtain one, it would worsen. Deputy Forester was only able to locate Mr. Ayala the Monday after the incident, so he was unable to provide the protective order.
The defendant testified as the second witness. In April 2019, he had separated from his wife due to marital feuds. His wife now had full custody of the three children. On April 28, Mr. Ayala was texting one of his daughters when he learned his wife had left their three children at home alone. When he went to the house, he knocked on the door but none of the daughters answered. He then waited for his wife to come home and confronted her about how she keeps leaving the children home alone, and about her intoxication.
The defendant has also been convicted in the past for domestic violence. Therefore, during this confrontation the wife had mentioned that she would call the police, knowing that this may affect Mr. Ayala’s probation status. Furthermore, during this encounter, Mr. Ayala allegedly caused injuries to the wife. She had reported swollen and bruised cheeks. Mr. Ayala denied causing those injuries. A few days after the incident, the defendant allegedly did call his wife and offer $1,000 dollars that he owed her in child support and apologized for his role as a husband.
During this time, Mr. Ayala had also stated that he has been fighting addiction to methamphetamine. He has been working toward being sober and improving his overall health.
