A jury trial for Grayr Markosyan, 24, has been continued until July 15 at the Glendale city courthouse. He is charged with Battery Against a School Employee, PC 243.6, a misdemeanor.
On February 19, Markosyan, a former GCC student was seen fleeing from the library building where an English teacher was heard screaming for help and crying after being assaulted.
Two Glendale students who chased the suspect to parking lot 34, tried to convince Markosyan to turn himself in. He shouted back, “you wouldn’t understand, I was abused and picked on.”
On February 20, Markosyan was arrested and then released on his own recognizance the following day.
Jilbert Tahmazian, Markosyan’s attorney, said that his client was served on March 12 with a three-year restraining order.
“It prevents him from coming near campus and near the victim,” said college police Capt. Nidal Kobaissi, who had accompanied the victim to court for safety reasons on March 20 to make sure they didn’t run into each other.
According to college police Chief Steve Wagg, the trial was pushed forward to April 22 because the court was not ready to hear the case.
The district attorney then pushed the date to May and again to June 6 in which the final date was set for the pretrial hearing.
The assaulted teacher did not return to complete the spring semester.
SIDEBAR:
According to the California Penal Code, chapter nine: Assault and Battery, 243.6: When a battery is committed against a school employee engaged in the performance of his or her duties, or in retaliation for an act performed in the course of his or her duties, whether on or off campus, during the school day or at any other time, and the person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a school employee, the battery is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by a fine not exceeding $2,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment. However, if an injury is inflicted on the victim, the battery shall be punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than $2,000, or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.