Officer charged with assault

A 14-year Frederick police veteran was charged with second-degree assault Thursday after a nearly two-week investigation into allegations of domestic abuse.
Cpl. Martin Holt, 51, is accused of striking his live-in girlfriend several times in the chest and once in the back, according to the Frederick Police Department.
Officers were called to an apartment in the 1400 block of Key Parkway at 1 a.m. June 16, police said in a news release.
The woman told police that she and her live-in boyfriend became involved in an argument that turned physical.
The woman did not require medical treatment, according to Lt. Clark Pennington, police spokesman.
"She did not receive serious injuries due to the alleged assault," he said.
Holt was off-duty at the time, according to Pennington.
Holt was taken into custody Thursday at the police station and served with a summons before being released, Pennington said. He will be required to appear in front of a District Court judge within five days, Pennington said.
"It concerns us anytime allegations are made against one of our officers," Police Chief Kim Dine said in a phone interview Thursday. "We have the utmost level of integrity and we take these matters seriously, regardless of who is alleged to have committed them. We hold our officers to the highest standards and we are transparent in our operations."
Dine said he was outraged by the allegations of domestic violence.
Charges were not immediately filed, according to Pennington, because the case was still being investigated.
"Once we developed probable cause, we did apply for and he was served with the charges today," Pennington said.
The case remains under investigation, he said.
Holt was assigned as the assistant supervisor of the midnight shift in the Patrol Division, police said. Last year, Holt's salary was $89,047.
He has since been assigned to administrative duties. The case is also being reviewed by the police department's Internal Affairs Unit.
Holt is the second Frederick police officer to face criminal charges in recent months. Officer Robert Pierce, an 11-year veteran, was charged in March with driving under the influence of alcohol and failing to report an accident. The case is scheduled for trial in August.
Pierce was arrested in Middletown after 911 calls alerted officers to a police cruiser being driven erratically. Pierce -- who admitted taking a sleeping pill that morning and drinking the night before -- was located by Frederick police. The Frederick County Sheriff's Office was contacted, and a deputy arrested Pierce.
Dine said the two cases should not affect how his department handles its law enforcement duties.
"I think what it does is highlight how transparent we are and how seriously we take these matters," he said of the two arrests. "We played major roles in both cases."