Former OKC Officer Found Not Guilty Of Domestic Violence, Sexual Abuse

(Editor's Note on Aug. 19, 2022: Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater told News 9 that charges against Luis Maldonado regarding a Nov. 2021 arrest were dismissed on Aug. 18, 2022. The Nov. 2021 arrest occurred after Maldonado's verdict was handed down. Below is the original story regarding the verdict of his Nov. 2021 trial. )

A former Oklahoma City police officer was found not guilty of all charges in an Oklahoma County district court.

Luis Maldonado went to trial this week for a number of charges including domestic violence and sexual abuse.

Maldonado took the stand on Friday and admitted to physically abusing his ex-girlfriend in 2019 after a night of drinking.

The jury was given the case to deliberate just before 5 p.m. Friday. They will decide if Maldonado is guilty of seven charges, three of which could send him to prison.

The former police officer sat on the stand for nearly three hours on the final day of witness testimony. Maldonado told the court an argument between him and his ex-girlfriend, the mother of one of his children, went too far in August 2019.

The couple was driving home from a nightclub when Maldonado described pushing the woman's face into the steering wheel while she was driving, causing her nose to bleed. He also admitted they both had been drinking.

At some point, the couple pulled into gas station and Maldonado got into the driver's seat. They then went to pick up their daughter and drove home.

Maldonado denied what his ex-girlfriend testified happened when they got to her home. She claimed he spit on her, hit her while she was holding their child and then forced her to perform oral sex on him. She said Maldonado also allegedly threatened her life several times during the night.

The woman's coworkers reported the abuse after seeing her injuries. Maldonado admitted he wrote her a script on what to tell investigators over the phone. He claimed they worked together to not get him in trouble.

Prosecutors said the domestic abuse started two years before Maldonado was arrested. They also said he used his police badge and uniform to intimidate and control the victim throughout their relationship.

Maldonado was fired from the police department last year. He has been in jail with no bond since the 2019 arrest.

The jury took less than two hours to make their decision.