A Napa man who was accused of domestic violence Feb. 23 was cleared of wrongdoing.

Judge Jane York, a visiting judge to Napa County Superior Court, dismissed the charge against Genaro (Jose) Fernandez, 23, at the request of Napa County deputy district attorney Michael Mautner, according to the Napa County District Attorney's Office.

"In essence what the court found was that the charges against him were trumped up," said Douglas Smith, Fernandez's attorney. "It just goes to show that the system does work."

For Fernandez, a local real estate agent and former U.S. Army field artillery computer specialist who served in Iraq in 2003, the court process was a grueling experience.

"Emotionally it's been tough," Fernandez said. "The court process was very difficult and (it involved) trying to go before everybody and trying to clear my name."

The charges stem from an incident involving Fernandez and his former girlfriend. The two had met up at the Napa County Sheriff's Department on the 1500 block of Airport Road to exchange their two children.

Fernandez was accused of shoving his girlfriend into a car and causing her injury. But on June 15, the district attorney moved to dismiss the case against Fernandez due to a "lack of evidence," Smith said.

"I'm trying to put it behind me," Fernandez said. "I'm actually pretty deep in a financial debt. It was $25,000 for attorney fees."