Ex-Deputy Guilty of Spouse Abuse
A former Ventura County deputy sheriff pleaded no contest in Superior Court on Friday to a felony charge that he beat his wife.
With the no-contest plea, Fillmore resident Kenneth Matye was automatically convicted of one charge of spousal abuse.
On March 6, while Matye was still employed as a deputy sheriff, he went to the Santa Paula apartment of his estranged wife, Deputy Dist. Atty. Mary Peace said. He was convicted of “hitting her, punching her, kicking her, choking her,” Peace said. “It was a 45-minute incident.”
Matye, who is free on $10,000 bail, will be sentenced in Superior Court on Aug. 16.
He faces either a state prison term of up to four years or a County Jail term of up to one year and a fine of up to $6,000.
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