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DA unsure why officer once again arrested for domestic violence was granted bond without hearing
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GONZALES - District Attorney Ricky Babin is unsure why his office was not notified about the aggravated assault domestic abuse arrest of a police officer before he was released over the weekend.
"I wish we could have looked at it. Whether [the judge] made a bad decision or a good decision remains to be seen," he said.
On Friday, St. Gabriel police officer Ronald Monroe Jr. was arrested by Gonzales Police for hitting and pulling a gun on his current girlfriend when she confronted him about an alleged affair she had caught on home security cameras.
Documents obtained by the WBRZ Investigative Unit show Monroe was booked on domestic violence charges Friday afternoon and was out of jail by Saturday evening. We're told there was no hearing, and he was granted a bond by Judge Thomas Kleibert Jr.
Kleibert did not respond to our request for comment.
According to Babin, generally, a special hearing takes place before any talk of release in cases of domestic violence to protect the victim.
"It's called a Gwen's Law hearing. We were never notified of a Gwen's Law hearing. Generally how those go is the court will set a hearing. When they get the bond package, to set the bond, they'll notify us of a bond hearing and he bonded out over the weekend. There was no notice sent to us."
He says it's not typical for any hearing to happen over the weekend, and believes his $16500 bond was on the low end.
"I think it's maybe below average."
Babin says he's unsure what information the judge had in front of him when he decided to grant that bond, but they are supposed to consider criminal history.
"Prior criminal conduct or prior arrest history are things the court will review and things we will argue to not bond this individual."
Two years before his latest arrest, another victim claims Monroe pistol-whipped her across her face following an argument.
Monroe was arrested but, as is common in domestic violence relationships, the victim later asked to have the charges dropped.
18th District Attorney Tony Clayton was reluctant to do so but agreed to Monroe's pleading to simple battery and put on two years probation.
Clayton said he considered Monroe dangerous and a liability as an officer.
Based on the facts, Babin agrees more should have been done.
"Usually, the [Gwen's Law] hearing would be set by the court before anything else happened," he said.
Monroe is currently on unpaid leave, however, St. Gabriel Police Chief Kevin Ambeau says he will be recommending his termination at the next board meeting in August.
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