Prosecution starts presentation in officer’s trial

The ex-wife of a former Huntington Beach police officer accused of 20 felony counts including rape, sodomy and spousal rape took the stand Thursday afternoon as his preliminary hearing began.

Prosecutors began presenting evidence shortly after 2 p.m. to Superior Court Judge Richard J. Beacom at Central Justice Center in Santa Ana for the case against James Roberts III.

Roberts, 34, is charged with alleged acts against his wife, an alleged mistress and another man while serving as an officer with the Police Department. He pleaded not guilty Feb. 26 to rape, forcible sodomy, false imprisonment by violence or deceit, criminal threats, domestic battery, aggravated assault, dissuading a witness and vandalism.

He faces a maximum sentence of 23 years and four months in prison if convicted on all charges.

The preliminary hearing is expected to continue Friday and into next week, prosecutors said. A preliminary hearing is where prosecutors present evidence to a judge who rules if the case is strong enough to go to trial.

Roberts, with his father and sister in the audience, sat at the defendant’s table in a gun-metal gray suit and closely cropped hair watching and taking notes as his ex-wife detailed his alleged pattern of violence and repentance for his actions from June 2007 to March 2008.

The Independent is not identifying Robert’s ex-wife because she is a possible victim of sexual assault.

The ex-wife choked back tears as she recalled the alleged incidents of Halloween 2007. The two had separated in 2006 and she had filed for divorce earlier in the month, but Roberts came to the Huntington Beach house the two used to live in together, she said.

After a confrontation over her text messaging other people, she tried to escape him by locking herself in the guest room, holding the door handle and using her body to brace the door, she testified.

Roberts allegedly broke open the door, which hit his then-wife in the side of the face, knocking her down, she said. She fled to their son’s room, but couldn’t get the door closed fast enough, she said. The son wasn’t home at the time.

He allegedly grabbed her by her hair, holding her with her back against the wall, she said. He ripped her clothes off her body before allegedly raping her on the floor of their son’s room, she said.

“He told me he was going to get me pregnant,� she said. “That we were going to be a family again.�

Deputy Dist. Atty. Cyril Yu questioned her about a handful of incidents where Roberts was allegedly violent with her, several while their son was present during the nearly two hours of testimony.

Defense Atty. John Barnett began cross-examining Roberts’ ex-wife and is expected to continue Friday morning.

Barnett went over the timeline of events, arguing that while the ex-wife “paint[ed] a picture� of Roberts relentlessly pursuing her, but that wasn’t necessarily the case, he said. She allegedly sent a number of emails and text messages during the time trying to re-establish a relationship, including a sexual one, while the alleged incidents were going on, he said.

He highlighted several emails from July 2007 where she begged and pleaded Roberts to call her, or come over, and apologizing for pushing him away.

“You’re the one pleading and begging for contact,� Barnett said to the ex-wife.

The ex-wife said she continued to seek a relationship with him because he was her husband, father of her child and she was still in love with him.

“It was a very dysfunctional situation,� she testified.

Barnett also pointed out that the ex-wife didn’t make an official complaint with the police until Dec. 11, 2008.

Barnett said he is not planning on calling any witnesses.