Live Oak High School assistant principal Kim Lemos pleaded no
contest to a reduced charge in the case in which she is accused of
stabbing her husband.
Live Oak High School assistant principal Kim Lemos pleaded no contest to a reduced charge in the case in which she is accused of stabbing her husband.
Lemos, 39, of Gilroy, pleaded no contest to disturbing the peace, a misdemeanor, according to South Santa Clara County supervising deputy district attorney Steve Lowney.
The plea was a result of negotiations between Lemos and prosecutors, Lowney said. Prosecutors will ask the court to order Lemos, who was arrested by Gilroy police in August 2010 following a physical altercation in which she injured her husband Tim Lemos, to attend a 32-hour anger management course as her sentence. She will not serve any jail time.
Kim Lemos will be formally sentenced June 13.
Shortly after her arrest, the D.A.’s office charged Lemos with inflicting corporal injury on a spouse, a felony to which she pleaded not guilty in December. However, Lowney said he reduced the charge because the victim refused to testify or cooperate with prosecutors.
“Consequently we were unable to prove the felony,” Lowney said.
Under state law, the only way a domestic violence victim can be compelled to testify against their aggressor is with a fine issued by the judge, Lowney said. But prosecutors were unwilling to ask the judge to take such an action.
“It would be a very rare circumstance to ask the court to levy fines against the victim of a domestic violence (incident),” Lowney said. Courts used to be able to hold domestic violence victims in contempt, and even jail them if they refused to cooperate, but that law changed in recent years.
Gilroy police arrested Lemos Aug. 26, 2010, after she turned herself in for the incident which occurred the night before at the couple’s home on Swallow Lane in Gilroy.
Tim Lemos did not require immediate medical attention after he was stabbed but he later drove himself to Saint Louise Regional Hospital to receive stitches for a cut he sustained to his left hand when grabbing for the knife, police said.
Kim Lemos, who taught English at Gilroy High School until 2003, returned to her job at Live Oak High School after the incident. As assistant principal, her duties include dealing with discipline, attendance, athletics and school safety, among other responsibilities.
Lemos is subject to the provisions of a peaceful contact order, which was issued by the court in September and restricts her interaction with her husband. She faces a maximum sentence of four years in prison if found guilty of the charge.
Morgan Hill Unified School District superintendent Wes Smith did not immediately return a phone call.
