LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The dad accused of child abuse and battery was released on his own recognizance by Judge Rebecca Saxe Tuesday morning.
Judge Saxe also told 39-year-old Jose Montes to stay out of trouble and keep away from the alleged victim.
Montes is the accused suspect in a viral video showing an adult man hitting and kicking a 13-year-old boy near Robison Middle School last week.
A prosecutor asked Judge Saxe to set Montes' bail for $20,000 due to the violence of the attack.
Montes' defense attorney, James Gallo, asked for him to be released on his own recognizance. He claimed Montes acted out after the boy appearing to get hit in the video bullied his son for nearly six months.
"My understanding is that the victim doesn't even go to that school and came there just to confront my client's child," Gallo said.
The mother of the alleged teen victim, Melissa Rodriguez, said she's devastated Montes was released so soon.
"No man should be out in the streets with that kind of violence," Rodriguez said. "I'm trying to get justice for my son and it does scare me, though, that he will be willing to come here and harm him in any other way."
Rodriguez said her son used to attend Robison Middle School. But on the day of the altercation, he was visiting friends.
"My son hasn't been in Robison Middle School since November," Rodriguez said. "Before that, he was in in-house suspension so I had to drop him off at school and pick him up. So he hasn't had any encounter with this child at all."
Montes' defense team also said in court that Montes' son was jumped twice in the past six months, with one of the attackers being the alleged victim. He said the alleged victim also carried a knife.
"I wouldn't see my son being in that situation, bringing any kind of weapons into the school or or using them," Rodriguez said. "My son is not a saint. He is just a normal teenager. He is going through troubles."
Montes is scheduled to be back in court Thursday morning. He's facing felony charges of child abuse and coercion, and misdemeanor charges of battery, interfering with a student from attending school and contributing to delinquency of a minor.
Clark County School District Police said they will look into whether the students involved will face charges.
Channel 13 also spoke to Montes in June 2021 when he was falsely accused of killing his own son.
This was after a body of a young boy found off State Route 160 between Las Vegas and Pahrump was misidentified.
“It’s unbelievable the way I was thrown under the bus, you know," Montes said at the time.
Montes' son was ultimately found safe with his father.
