An attorney representing Madison Alder Charles Myadze filed a motion in Dane County court Monday asking the court to dismiss six of the eight domestic violence charges filed against Myadze in December.
Attorney Timothy Lloyd Baldwin, who was just added to Myadze’s defense team the morning of his appearance in court Monday, wrote that the criminal complaint outlining the charges lacks probable cause and contained “superfluous” and “contradictory” allegations.
Myadze was arrested on December 12 on eight charges based on allegations by former deputy mayor and mayoral candidate Gloria Reyes.
The motion seeks to dismiss one charge of burglary, two charges of attempted burglary, one charge of false imprisonment and two charges of strangulation. It does not seek to dimiss one charge of substantial battery — though it does address that charge — and one other charge of strangulation.
The affidavit in support of the motion notes what Baldwin considers flaws in evidence and inconsistencies. For example, the affidavit notes that one strangulation charge is supported by a photo of bruises on Reyes’s neck, but doesn’t specify when the photo was taken, giving Myadze “no possible way to defend against the allegation.”
The affidavit seeks to dismiss one of the attempted burglary charges because Myadze returned what he allegedly stole, and a burglary charge requires the intent to deprive someone of property.
The charges, filed in December, come after several months of allegations and revelations about the three-term alder.
In the spring of 2024, former girlfriend Michelle McKoy and ex-wife Jamie Johnson alleged that Myadze had abused them for years, going back as far as 2002.
Later, three women brought complaints of sexual harassment. In October, an independent investigation found that Myadze did engage in “bizarre” and “troubling” behavior with the women — a fellow Alder, a City employee and a local nonprofit leader — but that he did not violate city policy or state law.
In November, former Madison school board president, deputy mayor and mayoral candidate Gloria Reyes alleged that Myadze abused her during a three-year relationship, including choking her and knocking her unconscious while he was serving as an Alder.
On December 10, the Common Council censured him on a vote of 13-2 for the behavior described in the investigative report, and Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway removed him from all committees.
On December 12, Madison police arrested him based on Reyes’s allegations. Charges include two counts of attempted burglary, three counts of strangulation, one count of subtantial battery with intentional bodily harm, one count of false imprisonment and one count of battery during a burglary. If convicted on all charges, he could face 60 years in prison. He was released on a signature bond after spending the weekend in jail and is due to appear in court again on February 3.
Myadze has denied most of the allegations, only acknowledging that his relationship with Reyes did become violent at times. He claimed it was Reyes who initiated the physical fights.
A preliminary hearing is set for March 11.
