Former PVE "house man" takes plea in assault case

It's been a bit crazy in the Crime & Courts machine lately, so I'm a little behind in some of my cases. In doing some updating, I learned this today:

A former Palos Verdes Estates "house man" has pleaded guilty to assaulting his employer, and will spend a year in jail, a prosecutor said Thursday. Peter Woods, 55, pleaded no contest last Friday to one count of assault causing great bodily injury and received the jail term and five years probation, according to Deputy District Attorney Lester Kuriyama.

Woods must also undergo a year of anger management counseling and keep away from his former boss and her son.

Woods' employer, Sheri Kantor, testified at a preliminary hearing earlier this year that Woods threatened to killer her, choked her and punched her on March 19 in her home in the 800 block of Gatos Place. But Woods testified he only grabbed and pushed his 57-year-old boss when she blocked his way when they were in a dispute over his pay.

An attempted murder charge against Woods was dropped in exchange for his plea.

Previously: PVE "household manager" accused of trying to kill employer