‘Jersey Shore’ Star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro Pleads Not Guilty in Domestic Violence, Child Endangerment Case

Jersey Shore star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro pleaded not guilty in a Los Angeles courthouse to seven misdemeanors on Friday following an alleged domestic violence altercation with his on-off girlfriend, Jen Harley, Us Weekly reports. Ortiz-Magro, 33, appeared at Van Nuys Courthouse West, where his lawyer entered his plea. The court hearing comes a little more than a month after he was arrested on suspicion of felony domestic violence and kidnapping his and Harley’s 18-month-old daughter, Ariana. The district attorney declined to bring the felony charges.

Ortiz-Magro, dressed in a black suit, remained quiet during the hearing while his attorney, Leonard Levine, spoke on his behalf. Sources told the news outlet that a Los Angeles City Attorney requested a protective order for Harley, 31, and Ariana, which was granted by the judge.

A previous protective order prohibiting Ortiz-Magro from being within 100 yards from Harley had expired.

The Jersey Shore Family Vacation cast member was charged with one count of domestic violence, one count of brandishing a deadly weapon, one count of criminal threats, one count of willful child endangerment, one count of false imprisonment and two counts of resisting arrest.

The charges stem from the incident that occurred at a Los Angeles Airbnb on Oct. 4, when Ortiz-Magro allegedly got into an altercation with Harley and brandished a knife before locking himself inside the house with Ariana. When police arrived, Ortiz-Magro allegedly resisted arrest, prompting officers to Tase him in order to detain him.

“Suspect (Ortiz-Magro) told victim (Harley) he was going to kill her. Suspect pushed victim out the house. Suspect ran after victim,” a police document obtained by TMZ at the time reads. “Victim knocked on neighbor’s door and set baby on ground. Suspect grabbed baby and dragged victim to the ground. Suspect punched victim with closed fist on face, causing visible injury.”

While Ortiz-Magro has yet to speak publicly about the arrest, his lawyer told E! News after his detainment, “The reporting of the alleged incident relating to Ronnie Magro yesterday is based upon pure speculation and innuendo. We are currently conducting our own investigation and will have no further comment until that has been concluded.”

Harley, meanwhile, was spotted with some serious bruises and abrasions after the altercation, but has resumed life in Las Vegas as she awaits progress in the court case.