Lawsuit accusing O.C. Board of Education trustee of choking neighbor dismissed

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A lawsuit that accused an Orange County Board of Education trustee of choking and attacking a neighbor during a road rage incident has been dismissed, court records show.

The lawsuit claimed Ken Williams Jr., who currently serves in District 3, in March 2023 threw his then-20-year-old neighbor to the ground and put his hands around his neck during a road rage incident in Mission Viejo.

The 20-year-old was taken to a nearby hospital and the two men were cited for assault and battery, but the Orange County district attorney’s office at the time said prosecutors who reviewed the case were unable to determine, beyond a reasonable doubt, who the primary aggressor was.

William’s neighbor, Caden O’Malley, filed suit in January 2024.

The suit alleged that Williams “slammed on his breaks” while O’Malley was driving behind him along El Toro Road and that, when O’Malley tried to pass him on the left side, Williams began to speed up his Cadillac Escalade. After more back and forth on the road between the two, the drivers pulled over and a physical altercation ensued, according to the lawsuit.

At the request of O’Malley’s attorney, Robert Vannah, the case was dismissed with prejudice in July, meaning claims tied to this incident cannot be refiled in civil court.

William’s attorney, David E. Libman, said his client and O’Malley had maintained different versions of how the incident unfolded.

“Dr. Williams has always maintained that he was acting i self-defense,” Libman wrote in an email. “The parties entered an agreement in June 2026 in exchange for a mutual release of claims; no money was exchanged. Per that settlement, the dismissal was then filed by Mr. O’Malley.”

Williams, who was first elected to the board in 1996, was facing a reelection campaign in March 2024. He was reelected to the board and is serving a four-year term.

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Salvador Hernandez is a reporter on the Fast Break Desk, the Los Angeles Times’ breaking news team. Before joining the newsroom in 2022, he was a senior reporter for BuzzFeed News, where he covered criminal justice issues, the growing militia movement and breaking news. He also covered crime as a reporter at the Orange County Register. He is a Los Angeles native.

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