Note: this article includes descriptions of violence that may be upsetting to some readers.
If you are in a violent relationship and need help, the domestic violence hotline is 1−800−799−7233; or, you can text "START" to 88788, or go to thehotline.org.
A federal judge sentenced a former ICE supervisor based in Cincinnati to 21 months in federal prison Thursday for making false statements to federal authorities during a domestic violence investigation.
U.S. attorneys argued for the maximum sentence of five years for former ICE Assistant Field Office Director Samuel Saxon, saying there is strong evidence he has repeatedly committed domestic violence against his partner. Saxon's defense attorneys, however, argued for a much shorter sentence, saying allegations of abuse haven't been adjudicated and that the relationship between Saxon and the woman he's accused of abusing are more complex than U.S. attorneys depicted it as.
U.S. District Court Judge Matthew W. McFarland called the evidence of abuse prosecutors presented "disturbing." But he also said he had faith that evidence would be weighed in state court.
"I've thought about this case for a long time, since this plea was entered," McFarland said in handing down the sentence. "I keep going back to the crime we are here for. The crime we are here for is lying."
McFarland also sentenced Saxon to mental health and substance abuse treatment and three years of supervised release following his time in prison. McFarland also ordered Saxon have no contact with the woman he's accused of abusing.
Cincinnati Police responded to reports of a domestic dispute at Saxon's Corryville apartment Dec. 5, 2025. Officers arrested him on felony assault and strangulation charges after a witness said they saw him put a woman who was living with him in a "chokehold."
A complaint filed in Hamilton County courts notes responding officers observed "visible injuries" on the neck of the alleged victim. A neighbor said Saxon was screaming at the woman and trying to drag her into their apartment, according to Hamilton County prosecutors. That neighbor recorded audio of part of the incident.
The domestic violence, assault and strangulation charges are pending in Hamilton County; they were paused while the federal charges played out. Saxon will be held in the Hamilton County Justice Center during that trial.
Federal charges
Federal charges state that early on the morning of Dec. 6, a Department of Homeland Security agent and a CPD officer interviewed Saxon about the domestic violence incident. Federal attorneys say Saxon lied during that interview by telling the officers he hadn't seen his partner — named as "D.A." or "Individual 1" in the documents — in person that day, despite having been involved in a physical altercation with her.
In April, Saxon pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to lying to the federal officer.
Federal attorneys sought a five-year prison sentence, the maximum related to the offense and above the sentencing guidelines because Saxon does not have a significant criminal record.
U.S. Attorney Julie Garcia argued for the longer sentence, saying while Saxon hasn't been convicted of domestic violence, there is clear evidence he repeatedly abused his partner during multiple incidents in Virginia, San Diego and Cincinnati, where he and his partner moved in June 2024.
Saxon's defense attorneys say he moved to Cincinnati after leaving ICE's San Diego office and that his relocation was part of a mediation before the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over a DHS investigation into previous domestic situations between the couple in San Diego.
"He had a firearm. He had a badge," Garcia told McFarland at the first of two sentencing hearings Oct. 20. "He had the authority of a federal agent. On the surface, he was a field officer. Behind closed doors, he violently, repeatedly abused his girlfriend."
U S. attorneys said they also found evidence Saxon was hostile to coworkers and logged work hours he did not actually work. His attorneys contested those assertions. Saxon was making roughly $196,000 a year at the time of the incident for which he was arrested, his attorneys said.
Pre-existing federal investigation
Records filed in relation to the case reveal a months-long DHS domestic violence investigation into Saxon was already underway when he was arrested last year. The documents filed by federal prosecutors purport to show a long pattern of abuse by Saxon against his longtime partner, including death threats and physical abuse that caused her hospitalization on multiple occasions, including time in an intensive care unit.
U.S. attorneys say that abuse took place in multiple states and seems to have been especially intense in Cincinnati. Local police responded to domestic violence calls related to Saxon about two dozen times between 2024 and his arrest in late 2025.
During one incident in April, 2025, records filed by U.S. attorneys allege Saxon punched the woman in the abdomen, broke her pelvis, and injured an artery in her torso. When officers asked during another visit in August why she didn't leave him, she said, "I'm trying, but it's hard."
During another police visit, U.S. attorneys testified the woman can be heard expressing fears that Saxon's ICE coworkers would be able to see police body camera footage of her telling them about the abuse.
At the Oct. 20 sentencing hearing, U.S. attorneys played cell phone videos subpoenaed from the iCloud account of the woman Saxon is accused of abusing. In those videos, Saxon is heard berating and threatening to kill the woman, who secretly recorded the abuse.
In one, Saxon is heard calling his partner "a bitch," alluding to her having a fat lip, and telling her, "you will be executed." He threatens, "Oh, I am going to kill you," after his partner accuses him of punching her.
In many videos, the woman can be heard screaming and crying.
Defense argues for shorter sentence
The woman Saxon is accused of abusing was present in the courtroom Oct. 20 with her attorney, Brad Moermond. Through Moermond, she asked the court to consider a lesser sentence of one year and one day for the federal charges.
WVXU is not naming the woman. Court filings show she does not have citizenship status in the U.S., though she has a green card. She was 19, and Saxon was 40 when they began their relationship.
"She wants to move forward with the state and is willing to work with them," Moermond said on her behalf, referencing the pending domestic violence, assault, and strangulation charges against Saxon in Hamilton County Courts. Moermond said the woman was frustrated by federal attorneys, however. "She feels used, like she was a pawn to enact a severe sentence in this case."
Defense attorney Zenaida Lockard sought to paint the relationship as toxic on both sides. She played a 911 call Saxon placed in which he reported his partner was attempting to kill herself.
"She's having a psychotic episode," he says on the call. "She's trying to jump off the balcony."
In the background, the woman can be heard saying, "You're lying... we're in an argument."
Lockard told the court Saxon tried to leave the relationship at least twice and paid the woman $88,000 to "start a new life." She also said the two were in the process of separating when the December 2025 incident happened.
Lockhard alleged Saxon had a lease for a separate apartment starting Dec. 6, 2025. She said Saxon's partner came to his ICE workplace Dec. 3, 2025, three times and refused to leave, "causing a scene."
The defense also noted that domestic violence allegations against Saxon are still pending adjudication in Hamilton County Courts, and that the woman hasn't cooperated with prosecutors.
Garcia pointed to research showing many domestic violence survivors don't cooperate with investigations due to fear or financial struggles.
"Survivors face dilemmas that might not be apparent from the outside," she said.
Garcia argued that the longer sentence is necessary and urged McFarland to use his discretion to go beyond the sentencing guidelines. She said a five-year sentence was appropriate given the evidence of Saxon's abuse.
"It also needs to send a message to other law enforcement officers who are considering violating the laws they are sworn to uphold," she said.
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