By Anna Judson
SACRAMENTO – Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Scott L. Tedmon probably believed he had no other choice but to set $1 million bail against Matthew Schmidt, who is accused of months of extreme threats, stalking and intimidation—family and friends said they are convinced he’d hurt himself or others.
Schmidt’s charges include possession of narcotics, stalking another person with intent to cause fear, and numerous violations of a restraining order. But Deputy District Attorney Roni Filippini repeatedly asked the judge to focus on the “totality of events.”
In June, the defendant and his ex-girlfriend (Victim #1) were in the midst of an argument when he threatened to kill himself and attempted to slit his wrists in front of her. Victim #1 was scared for her life and moved in with a friend (Victim #2). Both women filed restraining orders against the defendant and moved into a new apartment in early July.
On July 6, days after moving, the defendant allegedly slashed Victim #1’s car tires, and then attempted to confront his ex-girlfriend at her place of work on July 7. The defendant was arrested that day for violating his restraining order which had just been served in June.
On July 11, the defendant’s ex-girlfriend reported that Schmidt had been contacting her via text and email, noting in her police statement, “I believe he could hurt me or himself… I do not believe a restraining order makes a difference to him at all. Please help me, I live in fear every single day.”
After the victim had reported the repeated communications, the defendant was served another restraining order on July 17. Within hours of being served and leaving the courthouse on July 17, the victim received a call from the defendant’s mother. The defendant’s mother was extremely worried about her safety and warned that Schmidt stated he wanted to find and kill Victim #1, and kill himself.
Within 30 minutes of that call, Schmidt’s roommate called the police, saying that the defendant was making suicidal statements and consuming large amounts of heroin. During this time period, the 
defendant left voicemails on Victim #1’s phone that he had shot his roommate and the police were chasing him.
The following day, Victim #1 and her two friends (Victims #2 and #3) drove from Sacramento to a farmers market in Davis. Shortly after arriving there, the victim(s) saw the defendant in his car. The three victims said they were incredibly scared, especially given the threats that had been made to Victim #1 the previous day. They hid in a store and called 911, and, while the police found the defendant’s car, they were not able to locate the defendant.
Over the next two days, Victims #2 and #3 were allegedly stalked by the defendant. Neighbors gave statements that they repeatedly saw Schmidt parked outside of the friend’s houses over the next two days. On July 20, Mr. Schmidt was arrested outside of Victim #3’s house. In his possessions were a knife and a pipe with methamphetamine.
Prosecuting Attorney Filippini emphasized that these actions be understood for what they are—the stalking of multiple victims.
After learning about Schmidt’s alleged interactions with Victim #1, the ex-wife reached out to the DA’s office and sent a letter expressing her fear for these victims. In her letter, the ex-wife stated that she was not surprised by the charges.
She talked about the bruises, wounds, and psychological trauma she experienced during her relationship with Mr. Schmidt, and a 2015 Richmond case where he plead guilty to vandalizing her residence. The ex-wife she stated is “worried he will continue to get away with these actions until someone ends up dead.”
In reconciling the many threatening actions Schmidt took against the victims, Judge Tedmon agreed that bail be set at $1 million. That enormous bail undermined Assistant Public Defender Sameera Ali’s argument that Matthew Schmidt’s actions were attributable to drug relapse and not actual violence.
The preliminary hearing for this case is set for 8:30 a.m. Sept. 22 in Dept. 9. The defendant is continuing to plead not guilty to all the charges brought against him.
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