(Photo: Tapology.com)
FREEBORN COUNTY, Minnesota — July 2, 2025 — Justin Daniel Stuart’s public record spans two very different worlds: Minnesota’s regional combat-sports scene and the Freeborn County criminal court system.
Court records show Stuart pleaded guilty in December 2019 to first-degree burglary stemming from a February 2018 incident in Freeborn County. In June 2020, a district court judge sentenced him to a 21-month prison term, stayed for five years, along with 180 days in the Freeborn County Jail and five years of supervised probation.
Separately, public combat-sports records identify a Justin Stuart from Albert Lea as an amateur MMA fighter. The sports record and court record share the same name and Albert Lea connection, although the court documents identify the defendant specifically as Justin Daniel Stuart, born June 10, 1996.
The juxtaposition is notable: Stuart built a public identity around combat sports while his court history ultimately included a felony conviction arising from a violent confrontation.
The 2018 Freeborn County case
The criminal case began with an incident reported in February 2018.
According to the probable-cause complaint filed in Freeborn County District Court, officers responded to a residence after a report of a disturbance involving Stuart and several other people.
The complaint alleged that Stuart went to the residence of a former girlfriend, who was also the mother of one of his children. Prosecutors alleged that he knocked on the back door, entered the residence without permission and went into a bedroom where another man was present.
According to the complaint, Stuart then struck the man repeatedly in the head and neck.
The alleged victim was reportedly having difficulty communicating when officers arrived. The complaint states that officers observed a large bruise developing on his neck and a significant contusion near his right eye. He was taken to a hospital and was reportedly experiencing severe jaw pain.
The complaint also alleged that Stuart spit in the face of his former girlfriend before leaving.
Those allegations were contained in the original criminal complaint. They should not be confused with the ultimate disposition of the case, which came through a guilty plea to an amended burglary charge.
What Stuart reportedly told police
The complaint also described statements attributed to Stuart after officers located him.
According to the probable-cause document, Stuart told officers that he had gone to the residence after becoming angry upon learning that his former girlfriend had begun dating another man.
The complaint states that Stuart admitted seeing the man in the bedroom and “snapped.” It further states that he acknowledged striking him and admitted spitting in the woman’s face.
Stuart was arrested and initially held at the Freeborn County Adult Correctional Facility.
The original charges
The original case involved four criminal counts.
The two most serious charges were first-degree burglary involving an assault, prosecuted under Minnesota Statute § 609.582, subdivision 1(c).
The case also included charges of:
- Fifth-degree assault
- Gross-misdemeanor domestic assault
The first-degree burglary charges carried a potential maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $35,000 fine.
After his arrest, Stuart was released under conditions that included restrictions on contact with the alleged victims and requirements concerning his conduct while the case was pending.
Court warrants followed missed appearances
The court record shows that Stuart’s case did not proceed without complications.
A warrant dated October 14, 2019, states that Stuart failed to appear for a scheduled hearing.
The warrant ordered his arrest and listed hold without bond.
Four days later, on October 18, 2019, a new release order was entered. The order again imposed restrictions including no contact with the victim or victims, no assaultive or threatening behavior and restrictions concerning firearms and dangerous weapons.
The court also required Stuart to report to probation twice each week in person.
The sequence of court orders illustrates that the criminal case remained active for more than a year before the eventual plea and sentencing.
A guilty plea changed the case
On December 2, 2019, Stuart entered a guilty plea pursuant to Minnesota Rule of Criminal Procedure 15.
Under the plea agreement, Stuart agreed to plead guilty to an amended first-degree burglary charge under Minn. Stat. § 609.582, subd. 1(a).
The remaining charges were dismissed as part of the disposition.
In his written plea petition, Stuart acknowledged that he understood the charge and the constitutional rights he was giving up by pleading guilty, including the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses and the right to remain silent.
The plea petition states that Stuart entered the plea voluntarily.
The 2020 sentence
On June 25, 2020, District Court Judge Steven Schwab sentenced Stuart on the first-degree burglary conviction.
The court imposed a 21-month prison sentence, but stayed execution of that sentence for five years.
Stuart was additionally ordered to serve 180 days in the Freeborn County Jail through work release, with credit for six days already served.
The court placed him on five years of supervised probation.
The conditions included requirements that Stuart remain law-abiding, report contacts with law enforcement, comply with searches based on reasonable suspicion, provide a DNA sample when directed and obtain permission before leaving Minnesota.
The court also imposed restrictions concerning alcohol and controlled substances, firearms, assaultive or threatening behavior and contact with the victim.
Stuart was ordered to complete domestic-abuse counseling or treatment.
The MMA connection
Stuart’s criminal record is not the only public record attached to his name.
Combat-sports coverage identifies a Justin Stuart of Albert Lea as an amateur MMA fighter. A June 2020 report from Minnesota Boxing Events described Stuart as an experienced amateur MMA fighter with an 11-4-1 record.
The report states that Stuart accepted a kickboxing main-event opportunity at Valhalla Combat’s Father’s Day Fracas in Fridley, Minnesota, on only two days’ notice.
He faced Andrew Case-Allan and lost by unanimous decision.
That record provides important context without requiring speculation about Stuart’s motivations. The court documents establish the criminal conduct for which he was ultimately convicted; the sports records establish his connection to amateur combat sports.
What cannot responsibly be established from these records is why Stuart became involved in the confrontation described in the criminal complaint.
There is no basis in the documents reviewed for claiming that his MMA career caused, motivated or explains the criminal conduct.
A violent confrontation and a combat-sports background
The contrast is nevertheless difficult to ignore.
MMA is a regulated combat sport in which participants voluntarily compete under established rules, with officials, medical oversight and agreed-upon conditions.
The conduct alleged in Stuart’s original criminal complaint occurred outside that environment.
According to the complaint, the confrontation involved a private residence and people with whom Stuart had a personal relationship. The complaint alleged that another man was struck during the confrontation and that Stuart threatened his former girlfriend.
The eventual felony conviction was for burglary, not for an MMA-related offense.
That distinction matters.
A combat-sports record does not make someone responsible for a criminal act, nor does a criminal conviction establish anything about a person’s ability or success as a fighter. The two records simply document different parts of Stuart’s public history.
Probation and additional requirements
Following sentencing, Stuart remained under court supervision for five years.
An amended sentencing order dated October 6, 2021, maintained the stayed 21-month sentence and five-year probation term.
The amended order added cognitive-skills training and a sentence-to-service requirement. It also required Stuart to complete a “Responding to Violations” tool and restart and successfully complete a domestic-abuse program.
The underlying prison sentence remained stayed.
Probation formally ended in 2025
The final document supplied for review is an Order Discharging Probationer — Stay of Execution.
The order lists Stuart’s probation term as five years, with an expiration date of June 25, 2025.
The court ordered that Stuart be discharged from probation.
The order also states that, where applicable, his civil rights and right to hold public office were restored.
That discharge did not erase the underlying felony conviction.
The order expressly notes that it does not affect restrictions associated with other current or prior convictions in Minnesota or elsewhere.
The document also contains a warning concerning firearm restrictions applicable to qualifying felony crimes of violence.
The record in context
Stuart’s public record therefore contains several distinct chapters.
There is the Albert Lea combat-sports record, where a Justin Stuart competed as an amateur MMA fighter and later accepted a kickboxing bout on short notice.
There is the 2018 criminal case, which began with allegations of a violent confrontation at an Albert Lea-area residence.
There are the missed court appearances and warrants documented in the court record.
There is the December 2019 guilty plea to an amended first-degree burglary charge.
And there is the June 2020 felony sentence, followed by five years of supervised probation.
Finally, on June 25, 2025, that probation came to an end.
The result is a public record that reaches well beyond a fight card or a single court appearance.
Case at a glance
Defendant: Justin Daniel Stuart
Date of birth: June 10, 1996
Location: Albert Lea, Minnesota
Court: Freeborn County District Court, Third Judicial District
Felony case: 24-CR-18-195
Offense date: February 5, 2018
Final conviction: First-degree burglary
Guilty plea: December 2, 2019
Sentence: 21 months in prison, stayed for five years
Local jail: 180 days through work release
Probation: Five years, supervised
Probation discharged: June 25, 2025
MMA record referenced by sports coverage: Justin Stuart of Albert Lea, 11-4-1 amateur record
Where the case stands
As of June 25, 2025, the court documents supplied for review show that Justin Daniel Stuart had completed the five-year probationary period imposed following his first-degree burglary conviction and had been formally discharged from probation.
The discharge ended the probationary supervision. It did not eliminate the underlying conviction from the court record.
The original assault and domestic-assault charges, along with the additional burglary count, were ultimately dismissed as part of the plea disposition.
The court record and the combat-sports record tell different stories, but together they provide a fuller picture of the public history attached to the name Justin Daniel Stuart.
This article is based primarily on Freeborn County District Court records supplied for review. Allegations contained in the original probable-cause complaint are identified as allegations and should not be confused with the ultimate conviction. Sports information is based on independently published combat-sports records. The article does not speculate about Stuart’s motives or character beyond what is supported by the public records reviewed.