A Santa Clara, California, jury has convicted a San Jose pastor and former community activist of misdemeanor domestic violence, after prosecutors said he assaulted and strangled his female partner.
After she reported the incident to police, he then sued her for defamation.
The jury deliberated about three hours on July 2 before finding the Rev. Ray Fitzgerald Montgomery, 59, guilty of misdemeanor domestic violence. The charges stemmed from a June 6, 2024, attack in his San Jose home, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
Montgomery is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8 and faces possible jail time.
Prosecutors said Montgomery violently assaulted the then-42-year-old woman by picking her up, dragging her down a hallway and strangling her. The woman escaped, hid in a bathroom and sought help.
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Ray Fitzgerald Montgomery, pictured at Second Baptist Church in Martinez in 2017. (Photo courtesy of Facebook)
Prosecutors said the woman told a friend about the assault, photographed her injuries, sought treatment at Stanford Hospital and reported the incident to police several months later. She formally identified Montgomery as her alleged attacker to San Jose police on Nov. 26, 2024, and provided additional statements to investigators.
District Attorney Jeff Rosen said the verdict underscored prosecutors’ commitment to pursuing domestic violence cases despite efforts to discredit victims.
“We believe domestic violence victims,” Rosen said. “Lawsuits and lying will never stop us from seeking justice for those who are hurt by their partners.”
Before criminal charges were filed, Montgomery sued the woman in 2025, alleging she had falsely accused him of abuse and defamed him. The civil lawsuit became an unusual backdrop to the criminal case that followed.
The woman, who leads a South Bay nonprofit organization, was not identified in court filings or some media reports because she is the victim of an alleged domestic violence crime.
At the time of the reported assault, Montgomery served as executive director of People Acting in Community Together, or PACT, a San Jose faith-based community organizing group. He stepped down from that position after the allegations surfaced.
Montgomery also has served as a former senior pastor of Second Baptist Church in Martinez.
The case attracted attention because of Montgomery’s prominence in South Bay civic and faith communities and because of the competing civil and criminal proceedings involving the same allegations.
The Mercury News reported that Montgomery and the woman dated between 2020 and June 6, 2024, the day prosecutors say the assault occurred. The newspaper also reported that Montgomery led PACT when the domestic violence allegations arose.
During the criminal case, prosecutors relied on the victim’s testimony, photographs documenting her injuries, medical treatment records and subsequent police investigation. According to the district attorney’s office, the evidence persuaded jurors beyond a reasonable doubt that Montgomery committed misdemeanor domestic violence.
Santa Clara County prosecutors noted strangulation is a significant indicator in domestic violence cases because it can produce serious injury even when visible injuries appear limited.
Montgomery remains free pending sentencing, according to media reports.
Mark A. Kellner is a reporter based in Mesquite, Nevada. He most recently covered statewide elections for the New York Post and was for three years the Faith & Family Reporter for The Washington Times. Mark is a graduate of the University of the Cumberlands and also attended Boston University’s College of Communication.