The fate of a Newhall restaurateur found guilty Friday of two counts of simple battery and two counts of sexual battery on a former employee will have wait to another day.
Sam Albert Gardian, 48, co-owner of the Southern Smoke BBQ & Brewhouse in Newhall, missed his court date Monday,, when he was expected to be sentenced.
Late Friday afternoon, a jury issued their verdict of guilty, having found him responsible for the four incidents of battery against his former employee Jessica Castillo.
“He wasn’t transported by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for his court appearance,” Ricardo Santiago, spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office told The Signal Monday.
Gardian, who was out on bail during his week-long trial, was taken into custody Friday after the jury delivered its verdict. Court records show he was placed in custody at the Sheriff’s Station, a short walk across the courtyard of the Santa Clarita Courthouse.
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