The jury trial for Jon David Goldberg, accused of shooting his wife’s boyfriend to death on Sept. 26, has been postponed until October.
This morning Judge Christopher Wilson set Goldberg’s trial for Oct. 2. The trial had been scheduled to begin in June, but Goldberg now has a separate case alleging that he brandished a gun and fired shots near his wife. That assault allegedly happened a few hours before her boyfriend, Timothy Smith, was killed in the front yard of his Fortuna home.
The District Attorney’s Office wants those cases joined, while defense attorney Casey Russo is filing a motion to have the new charges dismissed. Arguments on both motions are set for June 12.
Goldberg’s wife Rachel Goldberg refused to testify against him during his preliminary hearing last month. Instead he was held to answer based on testimony from Rachel’s friend Frieda Smith, who said Rachel told her Jon Goldberg had fired a gun “all around her.”
Smith also said she had seen Rachel with bruised arms on several occasions, and that Rachel said she and Jon had been fighting. He initially was accused of misdemeanor battery, but the prosecution has dropped that charge.
Russo had argued during the preliminary hearing that the statute of limitations had expired on the battery charge.
Goldberg, 37, remains in custody on charges of murder and personal use of a firearm. The 42-year-old Smith, a well-known volunteer fire captain in Fortuna, was shot five times outside his home on Rohnerville Road.
Smith was killed just hours after his wife, Jessica Springer, found several nude photos of Rachel Goldberg on his cellphone. Springer called Rachel and demanded she tell her husband about the affair, which she did.
Jon Goldberg is being held on $1 million bail.
PREVIOUSLY:
- Man Shot, Killed Off Rohnerville Road in Fortuna; Police Searching for Suspect
- ’Fortuna Police Release Statement on Today’s Homicide; Shooting Resulted From ‘Personal Dispute’
- Fortuna Murder Suspect Arrested by SWAT Team East of Bridgeville; Victim ID’d
- Jon Goldberg, Suspect in Fortuna Murder, Appears in Court; Victim’s Wife Testifies
- Goldberg’s Attorney Says He Needs More Time
- New Charge Added in Goldberg Trial: DA’s Office Alleges Suspect Beat His Wife Before Killing Her Lover in Fortuna
- Surprise Witness Delays Hearing on New Spousal Battery Charges for Accused Murderer Jon Goldberg
- Accused Murder Suspects in Eureka, Fortuna Shootings Both Appear in Court
- Fortuna Murder Suspect Jon Goldberg’s Attorney Asks Judge For Closed Hearing
- Fortuna Murder Suspect Jon Goldberg’s Legal Team Continues to Push for Closed Courtroom for Hearing on Wife-Beating Charges
- Goldberg Hearing Delayed Again; Wife of Suspect in Slaying of Fortuna Firefighter Unable to Make Court Date
- Fortuna Murder Suspect Jon Goldberg’s Wife Held in Contempt for Refusing to Testify; Wife’s Friend Provides Testimony About Alleged Spousal Abuse