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SANTA FE 鈥� An assistant attorney for the city of Santa Fe has been charged with child abuse related to a 2023 incident in which he allegedly physically abused his teenage stepson, who later died by suicide.

A criminal complaint filed Monday in Santa Fe Magistrate Court charges 49-year-old Kevin Nault with abuse of a child, a third-degree felony, alleging he physically restrained his 13-year-old stepson on the floor of their home for roughly 20 minutes in 2023 during a dispute over a water bottle.

According to a statement of probable cause, Nault told Santa Fe Police Department investigators who looked into the incident in August of that year that he had placed the teen in a "bear hug" restraint after his stepson refused to hand him a water bottle and complete chores his mother asked of him before she left the house to run errands.

Nault, whose 4-year-old biological son was present during the incident, also claimed he felt threatened after the teen pushed a glass bottle onto the family's kitchen floor, shattering it.

Investigators noted that Nault is 6 feet, 1 inch tall, weighing approximately 320 pounds, while his stepson was 5 feet, 1 inch tall and weighed around 90 pounds.

Once the two were on the ground, Nault said the teen bit, scratched, kicked and attempted to headbutt him. While investigators found scratches and bite marks on Nault's body, they also observed in photographs "visible bruising injuries" to the boy's eye and arms, conflicting with the man's account of the incident, according to court documents.

The teen said Nault pinned him to the ground, restricting his breathing, and hit him repeatedly in the face with an open hand before locking him in his room, court documents say.

The 13-year-old told his therapist that Nault had subjected him to an "ongoing pattern of emotional abuse."

According to social media posts by the boy's father, the case was recently reopened at his urging. The posts state the teen killed himself in February 2024.

Ben Valdez, interim chief of Santa Fe Police, told the Journal on Wednesday that an administrative investigation into the handling of the incident was completed in March 2024 in response to "a complaint from a community member."

The same community member contacted Santa Fe Mayor Michael Garcia and police again this March "to express concerns on how the incident was handled and to share more information."

"A review of the administrative investigation and the original criminal case was completed, and SFPD leadership determined there was sufficient reason to investigate further," Valdez added. "The Special Victims Unit was assigned to complete a full and thorough investigation and found probable cause to charge Kevin Nault with Abuse of a Child. Charges were filed and the case has been submitted to the 1st Judicial District Attorney's Office for review."

Nault was placed on administrative leave Wednesday, according to city spokesperson Peter Olson.

John Miller is the sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 northern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at jmiller@abqjournal.com.