Gonzales man found guilty after hitting three women, including pregnant girlfriend

A Gonzales man has been found guilty of multiple charges after hitting three women.

24-year-old Ricardo Balli was found guilty following a jury trial of five felony charges including battery causing serious bodily injury, assault by means likely to cause great bodily injury, domestic violence, and vandalism.

The first incident was on May 13, 2016. Jane Doe #1 was attending the Salinas Valley Fair with friends. She was socializing throughout the evening with a group of men, including Balli. At the end of the night, she and her friend left the fair and Balli and his friends followed. They invited Jane Doe #1 and her friends to a party of which they declined. Balli became angry and grabbed Jane Doe #1’s keys to prevent her from leaving. As she ran to get her keys back from Balli, he turned around and struck her in the face with a closed fist. Balli immediately fled the scene. He hit the victim with such force that she fell straight to the ground and lost consciousness. She suffered a concussion, and a laceration to her forehead that required 8 stitches, and her teeth were also chipped because of the attack.

The second incident happened on September 24, 2016, Balli had his then girlfriend of two years, Jane Doe #2, picked him up from a friend’s house in Gonzales. She drove Balli from Gonzales to the Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital because she was having stomach pains. She was three months pregnant at the time. At the hospital, Balli became upset and did not want to go into the hospital with her. An argument began and he threw a full can of beer at her face. He then grabbed her by the neck and began to punch her in the head, chest, and stomach numerous times. She was able to kick Balli off of her, and ran from the scene. When Jane Doe #2 returned home that evening, she found that Balli had destroyed the inside of her apartment. The floor had been ripped, dresser had been broken, and TV was smashed among other things. Balli called her that evening bragging about the damage he had caused.

During the third incident on November 27, 2016, Balli was with his newest girlfriend, Jane Doe #3, and her sister at the Pizza Factory in Salinas. When dinner was over, the couple walked to the car in the parking lot. An argument began between the two that lasted until they got in the car. Once in the car, Balli grabbed Jane Doe #3 by the hair and began to punch her in the head repeatedly until her sister yelled for Balli to stop.

Balli was remanded into custody following the verdicts. Sentencing is scheduled for November 21, 2017, where he faces up to nine years in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.