‘Jersey Shore’ Star Angers Prosecutors After Skipping Court Appearance

Jersey Shore star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro reportedly missed a probation hearing on July 23 in connection with his April 2021 arrest. The prosecutor in the case found it “offensive” that the MTV star was not in attendance and was only represented by his attorney, Leonard Levine. Ortiz-Magro, 35, was arrested in April on domestic violence charges and released on a $100,000 bond. At the time of his arrest, Ortiz-Magro was still on probation for a domestic violence arrest in 2019.

“I find that offensive that everyone has to be here except the defendant,” prosecutor Heidi Matz told the court, reports Us Weekly. Levine said Ortiz-Magro agreed to admit to violating his probation. The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office plans to ask the reality TV star to spend 30 days in jail, Marz said, adding that Ortiz-Magro could serve the sentence in a program, per California law. Levine said Ortiz-Magro already spent 30 days in an inpatient program, so he hoped the court would count that as time served. The attorney said Ortiz-Magro is still participating in the program, attending outpatient meetings three times a week.

At the end of the hearing, the judge ordered Ortiz-Magro to appear in court on Aug. 11 for another hearing to decide if his inpatient stay will count for the probation violation. “He’s not going to be doing any jail time,” Levine told Us Weekly. He said Ortiz-Magro is “doing very well.”

Ortiz-Magro was arrested in April for a domestic violence incident allegedly involving his now-fiancee, Saffire Matos. After Matos called 911, the responding officers found Ortiz-Magro was the aggressor and reported seeing visible marks on Matos’ body. He was taken into custody for “suspicion of intimate partner violence with injuries and with priors.”

Matos later took to Instagram to denounce “misleading information” after the arrest. “With anybody who reached out with concern I appreciate it with all my heart, but everything that’s being portrayed out there are not facts. I don’t think it’s fair that people are using false accusations to gain attention,” she wrote. “Please leave Ron and I alone. You don’t know what someone is going through at the end of the day. Don’t believe everything you hear or read online. I’d appreciate privacy, please. Thanks for all your support.”

On June 21, Ortiz-Magro announced he and Matos got engaged. “I love you… Thank you for sticking by my side through thick and thin! Till death do us part,” he wrote, adding the hashtag “she said yes.” A source told PEOPLE Ortiz-Magro organized a picnic at a private beach for the proposal. “Ronnie has been taken this time to work on himself and his daughter,” the source told the magazine. “For him, he felt like this right time. They’re both really happy for this next chapter. His health and happiness are what is most important.”

Ortiz-Magro and his ex-girlfriend Jen Harley share a 3-year-old daughter, Ariana. Harley has had her own legal troubles in recent weeks and checked into rehab to treat alcoholism earlier this week. Ortiz-Magro was arrested for domestic violence against Harley in October 2019.