Tulsa Man Pleads Guilty to Domestic Violence Charge

A Tulsa man was in federal court today to plead guilty to domestic violence allegations, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.

Craig Lamar Gonzales, 22, pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit a felony. In his plea agreement, Gonzales admitted that in December 2019, he pulled the victim from her vehicle, dragged her by her hair, pushed her to the ground, and spit on her during an attempted kidnapping. Chief U.S. District Judge John E. Dowdell set sentencing for May 10, 2021.

“One in four women experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. Those numbers are even higher for victims who are Native American. This office is proud to stand with survivors of domestic violence and hold accountable their abusers. These cases are not always easy to prosecute, but they are some of the most important because you can help prevent a future homicide. Today, domestic abuser Craig Gonzales entered a plea of guilty for the assault he committed on an intimate partner,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. “Credit goes to the FBI and Tulsa Police Department who worked to investigate this matter.”

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aimee Cooper and Devon Lash are prosecuting the case. AUSAs Cooper and Lash are prosecutors from the Eastern District of Texas and the Eastern District of New York. Both volunteered to assist prosecution efforts here in the Northern District of Oklahoma due to the increased volume of cases since the Supreme Court’s ruling which stated the Creek Nation Reservation had never been officially disestablished by Congress. The United States and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation have jurisdiction of cases that occur on the reservation involving Native American victims or defendants.