A convicted drug dealer from New York whose sentence was commuted by President Donald Trump in 2021 has been found guilty of numerous parole violations.
Late last week, Jonathan Braun, 41, was found guilty of violating his supervised release by allegedly committing six crimes, including two counts of menacing and one each of forcible touching, petit larceny, sexual abuse, and failure to pay a fine.
Since August 2024, the defendant has faced numerous allegations from Nassau County and other Long Island law enforcement agencies.
In a Friday memorandum and order, senior U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto applied the “preponderance of evidence” standard to each of the charges filed by Empire State law enforcement. This standard of proof is significantly less stringent than the “reasonable doubt” typically required to convict a criminal defendant; however, it can be used to determine whether a person has violated their parole.
Since his parole, Braun has been charged with nine separate offenses. Matsumoto determined that the first three allegations lacked credibility. These three allegations included two counts of assault and one count of child endangerment, which occurred during a Sabbath dinner hosted at Braun’s home in late March.
The six additional charges were “proven…by a preponderance of the evidence” and dated from the summer of last year to March 22.
On July 17, 2024, Braun allegedly threw his wife off a bed and onto the floor, “causing her substantial pain and bruising her legs,” according to the complaint, which names the woman as the complainant. On August 12, 2024, the defendant allegedly threw his wife to the floor and punched her in the head, “causing her substantial pain,” dizziness, and “bruising,” according to the criminal complaint obtained by Long Island-based daily newspaper Newsday.
The majority of the charges from that arrest were later dropped, leaving only one count of petit larceny.
The larceny charge stems from separate scofflaw activity behind the wheel. Braun allegedly drove his white Lamborghini and black Ferrari over a Long Island bridge without paying tolls or displaying license plates, resulting in $160 in tolls and fines.
“[S]taff observed toll evasion by the Lamborghini and Ferrari approximately 75 times by the time a complaint by the Nassau County Bridge Authority was made with the Nassau County Police Department,” Matsumoto said in his ruling.
Braun was arrested again on February 15, this time on one count of allegedly forcibly touching another person’s intimate parts. A sexual assault charge was eventually added. This incident allegedly involved the defendant assaulting and groping his family’s live-in nanny.
The court’s order details the allegations and concludes with the nanny escaping the alleged attack by locking herself in the bathroom and calling her husband, Braun’s wife, and the police.
“He knows people,” the nanny testified in the case against the defendant. “He’s dangerous, and I don’t want him to hurt me.”
Braun was arrested for the third time on March 22nd, charged with second and third-degree menacing. This arrest stemmed from a January hospital visit, during which the defendant allegedly swung an IV pole at the nurse after an argument.
“The Court finds credible [the nurse’s] testimony that Defendant swung an IV pole in her direction while yelling repeatedly that he was going to ‘kill’ her, thus intentionally placing [the nurse] in reasonable fear of her physical injury,” wrote Matsumoto. “[The nurse] credibly testified that she feared that Defendant was intending, and was going to cause her physical injury when he swung the metal IV pole at her.”
Braun is also accused of threatening another congregant at a religious service after being asked to be quiet. Braun allegedly asked the shh-ing man directly, “Do you know who I am?” and “Do you know what I could have done to you?” The accused also allegedly “made a reference in Hebrew to the ‘Angel of Death.'” Then Braun allegedly grabbed the other man’s arm and continued to threaten him.
“The Court finds that [the congregant’s] testimony was credible and his fear of injury from Defendant was well-founded,” it continues. “Defendant intentionally placed [the congregant] in fear of physical injury by screaming threats at [him] and physically grabbing [his] arm with sufficient force to cause pain.”
The order concludes with a recitation of the court fees Braun has long owed to the United States Department of Justice as a result of his years-long legal troubles, which contrasts with his apparent wealth.
“Defendant is required, as a condition of supervised release, to make payments towards his $100,000 fine under a court-ordered schedule,” says Matsumoto. “Defendant informed his probation officer that he is employed but has not provided verification, and that his earnings are deposited directly into his bank account.” Defendant further stated that his family ‘takes care’ of him financially, so he does not need to use his employment earnings to cover his living expenses. The defendant lives in a multi-million dollar property, as shown in the video evidence.”
Braun faces five years in prison for the parole violations. He is scheduled to appear in court for sentencing on the morning of October 9.
In January 2021, the 45th and 47th presidents pardoned Braun as part of a final wave of 143 pardons and commutations.
