Court hearing postponed for Sacramento police officer accused of domestic violence
An arraignment hearing on Tuesday was postponed for a Sacramento police officer accused of committing domestic violence after allegations of an incident emerged three months ago.
Justin David Shepard, 30, had been scheduled to appear in Sacramento Superior Court for his arraignment Tuesday afternoon. But the hearing was postponed until Sept. 23, said court spokeswoman Kim Pedersen. She said a plea was not entered on Tuesday, since the hearing was postponed.
The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office on Aug. 13 filed a criminal complaint against Shepard. Prosecutors charged Shepard with one felony count of inflicting corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition on a person with whom he currently has or had “a dating relationship,” according to the complaint. The victim is identified in the filed complaint as “Sara Doe.”
Authorities say the incident that led to his arrest occurred May 6 in Natomas and resulted in visible injuries to the victim.
He was placed on administrative leave and stripped of his peace officer powers “as the administrative and criminal process continues,” according to a Sacramento Police Department news release issued on the day of his arrest. Shepard has worked for the Police Department for about three years.
Shepard was first arrested, booked and later released from Sacramento County Main Jail on a $50,000 bail bond May 7. Sacramento police investigators arrested him on suspicion of corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant, domestic violence, false imprisonment, making criminal threats of death or great bodily injury and making a threat with a gun, according to jail records.
Prosecutors in June declined to file charges against Shepard, saying there was “insufficient evidence to file charges and sustain a conviction on the guilt beyond a reasonable doubt standard,” according to a statement from the District Attorney’s Office at the time.
Shepard was arrested again last week after authorities learned he “was involved in another domestic violence incident” in San Francisco County, according to a news release from the District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors in Sacramento County then decided to file charges against Shepard based on “new criminal conduct and further investigation,” prosecutors said in the news release.
Along with the domestic violence allegations, the Police Department was investigating Shepard for alleged anabolic steroid use. Prosecutors have filed two misdemeanor counts of unlawful steroids possession, according to a criminal complaint also filed Aug. 13 in Sacramento Superior Court in a separate case.
