FRESNO – California Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula (41, of Fresno) has been charged Tuesday in a misdemeanor complaint with the crime of cruelty to a child, the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office has announced.

 The Complaint, filed in the Fresno County Superior Court Tuesday morning, alleges a sole misdemeanor count of Cruelty to a Child by Inflicting Unjustifiable Physical Pain or Mental Suffering under Penal Code section 273a(b).  If convicted of the charge, Mr. Arambula faces a sentence of up to six (6) months imprisonment.

The Fresno police arrested Arambula on December 10, 2018 after responding to a call from his 7-year-old daughter’s elementary school. Arambula and his wife have said the Assemblyman spanked his child on her buttocks as part of normal discipline. Fresno police Chief Jerry Dyer said Arambula’s daughter suffered an injury that was not on her buttocks and was just as certain a crime had been commit.

Dyer told local media in December, "There is no injury to the buttocks, that's not what we are investigating and even though we can't talk about the specifics of the injury, I can say the injury in this case is not on the buttocks."

Mr. Arambula was previously cited to appear in Fresno County Superior Court for his Arraignment on Wednesday. If found guilty, Arambula faces a maximum of six months in county jail.

 The Fresno District Attorney’s Office said there will be no further comment on this case pending the outcome of the trial.

Arambula represents California's 31st Assembly District in the Central Valley.