MANCHESTER - A bail revocation hearing is set for Thursday in Circuit Court-Manchester District Division for Ernesto Mateo, 22, formerly of 120 Myrtle St., who is accused of violating bail conditions on assault and threatening charges involving his wife.

Mateo is scheduled for trial Dec. 3 on Aug. 29 charges that allege he grabbed his wife and pushed her down on a bed, punched her in the right thigh and, with his left hand on her face, pulled his right hand back as though he was going to punch her and said, "I'm going to break your face."

Court documents show Mateo's wife told police who responded to the Myrtle Street address in August that the couple had been arguing because he was seeing another woman.

Mateo's wife told police Monday that he had written her letters, suggesting she not show up in court or refuse to testify against him, and that he had called her on her cell phone.

According to documents, Mateo's wife showed police the cell-phone evidence and presented envelopes and letters, including one that said, "they will smoke me if I get found guilty of this...please don't turn your back on me."

At the time of the alleged assault, Mateo was on parole on 2009 convictions for first-degree assault, kidnapping and robbery. He also has a conviction for second-degree assault.

A probable cause hearing on the felony witness tampering charge was set for Nov. 16 and trial on the stalking charge will be Dec. 3, the same day as the August charges.

Mixed-up court dates

Tyler Rooks' plea for personal recognizance bail on the newest charges he faces in Manchester got nowhere with Circuit Court-Manchester District Division Judge Gregory Michael Wednesday morning.

Court documents show Rooks, 19, of 354 State Route 101, Amherst, was a passenger in a vehicle stopped at Manchester and Beech streets in the city Tuesday. Police said Rooks was charged with possession of a controlled drug for having a bowl, scales and approximately five grams of marijuana in his possession.

He also was charged with contempt because he was out on bail on a number of other charges for which he already is scheduled to appear later this month and next month in Manchester, Concord, Milford and Candia courts.

Rooks told Michael, "I'm a single parent." He also said the drug he allegedly possessed was only synthetic marijuana, which Michael noted also is illegal.

Michael reduced the $5,000 cash/surety requested by the police prosecutor to $2,500 cash/surety on the Manchester charges and set $2,500 personal recognizance bail in a Milford case, which now has a Nov. 29 court date. Rooks had failed to appear in Milford on a motion to impose a 90-day sentence on a 2011 burglary conviction. The sentence had been suspended for good behavior and payment of restitution.

Rooks already was scheduled for trial Dec. 5 in Manchester on two separate operating-after-suspension charges for which he had failed to appear in July, so Michael added the new charges to the Dec. 5 court date.

Show up or sit in jail

Judge Michael told a woman who has had several arrest warrants issued for her failure to appear in court that if it happens again, he will set bail at $50,000 cash.

Michael said Malinda McCusker, 33, of 44 Karin St., has failed to appear at least three times on charges including two of operating after suspension and one of contempt.

McCusker was in court on a new felony drug charge, a misdemeanor charge of suspended registration and a violation charge of operating after suspension.

She could enter no plea on the felony charge and a probable cause hearing was set for Nov. 28.

Trial on the remaining charges was set for Jan. 22, 2013.

McCusker said she has no money. She said she is a hair stylist and because she is separated from her husband, "I have two children I support."

Michael said he would give her one last break. He set $1,000 personal recognizance bail and said she won't have to pay the $150 she owes in failure-to-appear fees until her next court date.

But he warned McCusker, "If you fail to appear again, you are going to sit in jail until all this is resolved."