SANTA CLARA (CA)
KNTV - NBC Bay Area [San Jose CA]
July 6, 2026
By NBC Bay Area staff
A jury last week convicted a San Jose pastor of domestic violence, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office announced Monday.
Ray Fitzgerald Montgomery is the former executive director of People Acting in Community Together (PACT).
After three hours of jury deliberations the 59-year-old was found guilty of misdemeanor domestic violence against a 42-year-old woman, with whom he had a relationship with, in his home in 2024.
According to the DA’s office, Montgomery “picked the victim up and dragged her down the hallway. She told him to stop, but he refused, eventually beginning to strangle her by pressing her neck between his forearm and bicep. Around that time, she felt she was about to lose consciousness when she felt him release her, causing her to then collapse on the floor.”
The woman was able to run and hide in a bathroom to call for help, authorities said. The next day, she went to Stanford Hospital and reported the domestic violence.
Before Montgomery was charged, he filed a lawsuit against the woman, claiming she was defaming him by falsely accusing him of the attack.
On Nov. 26, 2024, the victim identified her alleged abuser to San Jose police and later provided additional statements to investigators, authorities said.