An ex-girlfriend of San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi met privately Friday morning with a judge who will decide whether her testimony can be used in Mirkarimi's upcoming trial on domestic violence charges.
Mirkarimi, 50, has pleaded not guilty to domestic violence battery, child endangerment and dissuading a witness charges -- all misdemeanors - in connection with a Dec. 31 incident in which he allegedly bruised the arm of his wife, Eliana Lopez, during an argument.
Lopez has denied the charges against her husband.
Days after the charges were filed against Mirkarimi on Jan. 13, Christina Flores, an ex-girlfriend of his, filed a police report saying he was also abusive to her when they dated between June 2007 and December 2008.
During a pre-trial hearing earlier this week, Judge Garrett Wong ordered Flores, who lives in Southern California, to come to San Francisco for an in-camera meeting with the judge so he could determine whether to allow her to testify.
Flores apparently came into the courtroom from a back door and was meeting privately with Wong, district attorney's office spokesman Omid Talai said.
The doors to the courtroom were locked to the public during the meeting and that the judge had not yet made a decision as of noontime Friday but the hearing was continued until Monday.
Flores did not speak to the media Friday.
Prosecutor Elizabeth Aguilar-Tarchi said during the pre-trial hearing Monday that Flores described Mirkarimi as a "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" whose aggressive actions "in many instances mirror the current case."
Defense attorney Lidia Stiglich argued that testimony from Flores should not be admissible in the trial, which is expected to start next week, saying she never reported any of the alleged abuse to authorities until now, and that there is no one to corroborate her accusations.
Jury selection in the trial is expected to start Monday. Wong said earlier this week that he expects the trial to last no more than two weeks.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
