A Farmington man has been charged with aggravated driving while under the influence, battery against a household member and driving with a revoked license after police investigated an alleged domestic incident on East Main Street, according to a criminal complaint and statement of probable cause.
Ronson D. Sandoval, 43, was arrested Sept. 17 and charged with three misdemeanor counts in San Juan County Magistrate Court. All charges are allegations based on court records, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
According to the probable cause statement, Farmington police were dispatched at approximately 7:05 p.m. to the area of 6510 E. Main St. regarding a possible domestic violence incident and a possible impaired driver.
The probable cause statement says a sergeant reported seeing Sandoval outside a gray Audi and observing a woman attempting to walk away while Sandoval allegedly pulled her back toward the vehicle.
According to the statement, Sandoval later stopped near 6510 E. Main St., where officers contacted him and began investigating both the reported domestic incident and whether he had been driving while impaired.
Police reported that Sandoval acknowledged driving that day. According to the probable cause statement, an officer observed what he described as watery, bloodshot eyes, an odor of alcohol and Sandoval leaning against the vehicle for balance.
The officer administered standardized field sobriety tests on a paved sidewalk, according to the statement. Police reported observing six of six possible clues on the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, six of eight possible clues on the walk-and-turn test and four of four possible clues on the one-leg stand test.
According to the probable cause statement, Sandoval initially denied consuming alcohol that day. The officer later wrote that Sandoval said he had taken two shots.
The statement says Sandoval was read the New Mexico Implied Consent Advisory and refused a breath test when asked to provide a sample.
According to the probable cause statement, an officer reported finding three unopened alcoholic-beverage shooters on the floor below the driver’s seat while inventorying the vehicle.
Police wrote that Sandoval indicated he was aware his license was invalid or revoked. The criminal complaint separately alleges that the revocation was DWI-related.
Domestic Battery Allegation
According to a supplemental report included in the probable cause statement, an officer contacted the woman who had been riding in the front passenger seat of Sandoval’s vehicle. The officer reported observing what he described as a 4-inch laceration on the left side of her lower lip.
The woman told police that she and Sandoval had been arguing while traveling east on East Main Street near Piñon Hills Boulevard, according to the court record. She alleged that during the argument Sandoval used his right forearm and elbow to press her head into the passenger-side window and door while the vehicle was moving.
According to the statement, the woman told police she opened the passenger door and asked Sandoval to pull over because she wanted to leave the vehicle. Court records describe the two as having been in an on-and-off relationship for approximately 17 years. She declined medical services, according to the police account.
Sandoval gave a different account to investigators. According to the probable cause statement, he told police the argument was verbal and denied that it became physical. Sandoval told police he did not initially stop because he believed stopping in the intersection would be dangerous, and said he later pulled into 6510 E. Main St.
The statement also describes a witness who told police he saw the driver of the gray Audi hitting the woman seated in the front passenger seat. According to the witness account, he yelled at the driver to stop before the vehicle pulled into the East Main Street property.
Charges Filed
- Aggravated driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, refused testing — misdemeanor
- Battery against a household member — misdemeanor
- Driving while license revoked, DWI related — misdemeanor
Case Status
A probable cause determination filed Sept. 18 states that Magistrate Judge Erich F. Cole found probable cause and ordered Sandoval held pending entry of a release order after his appearance before a judge.
The supplied court records do not establish Sandoval’s custody status after that order or indicate whether he has retained legal counsel.
Source
This report is based on a criminal complaint, statement of probable cause and probable cause determination filed in San Juan County Magistrate Court in Farmington in case M-47-DR-2026-00137.
Legal Disclaimer
All charges are allegations based on court records, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.