Why is the woman who killed her husband and fled allowed release on bail?

[jseankil]

Can someone explain how they set bail? Why is this woman who admitted to killing her husband and fleeing with her children allowed to be released on a $750,000 bail while M. Clarett a football player who hasn't hurt anyone is stuck with a $5,000,000 bail?


Slain preacher's wife to get out on bond
http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/08/09/minister.slain/index.html


Bond set at $5 million in Clarett weapons case
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/cs-0608110204aug11,1,7151406.story?coll=cs-football-print

[Phoenix135]

I have no clue

But I know the justice system is inconsistent

[newyawker99]

7. Hi Phoenix135!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[RB TexLa]

1. because *she's already lost so much*

isn't that what they say when they go easy on female murderers? Of course they lost what they murdered but I've heard them say it anyway. And the crazy southern woman on CNN will tell us it's all part of her syndrome and the man should have been in jail.

[beyurslf]

2. Without going to either site or seeing their pictures, might it be race?

Hmmmmmmm. No way we're racist in America.

[EFerrari]

3. I read the linked article. It reads like there's a huge backstory

that is being suppressed. Like maybe, the community knew her husband. :(

It sure does present itself as unfair. These cases often do.

[catmother]

4. i think there may be a lot more to the story of why this woman

killed her husband. i think she was released because of her children.

[Mabus]

5. Clarett's got a history of aggravated assault, he was already out on bond

and facing other charges.

There are numerous factors that judges use to set bail. These include the suspect's previous record, their risk and ability to flee the area to avoid facing charges and their ties to the community. Considering that Mr. Clarett was out on bail for a previous charge of aggravated robbery and therefore was probably not allowed to have guns or access to them but was picked up after a high speed chase where he had to be subdued by multiple officers probably didn't win him any points with the judge. He was also carrying several loaded guns, wearing a bullet proof vest and it sounds like he gave the cops as hard a time as Mel Gibson did.

Anyway, below you'll find some information that might help clarify why Clarett's bail was so high. As for the woman, it apparently was her first offense and she's been in custody for about a month. She's got restrictions on her release as to where she can go and visits with her own children. Apparently the judge thinks there is little reason that she will be a violent offender before she goes to trial.

Clarett indicted; 2 others sought
Saturday, February 11, 2006

Bruce Cadwallader
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Maurice Clarett was indicted yesterday on charges of aggravated robbery with a gun, and the county prosecutor said authorities are looking for two other men who might have been involved in the Jan. 1 crime.

***

Clarett was indicted on two counts of aggravated robbery with gun specifications and five other counts. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison, O’Brien said.

Clarett, 22, of Youngstown, will be ordered to appear in Common Pleas court on Feb. 24 to enter a plea and have bond set. He remains free on $50,000 bail that was set in Municipal Court on Jan. 4, two days after he turned himself in at the county jail.

***

Aggravated robbery is a firstdegree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison for each count. Using a gun in a crime carries a mandatory prison sentence of three years. Clarett also is charged with carrying a concealed weapon, which carries a maximum sentence of 18 months. Four counts of robbery in the indictment are "fall-back charges," O’Brien said, if a jury decides that the evidence does not support aggravated robbery.

more at: http://www.columbusdispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/02/11/20060211-D1-03.html

This time Clarett was picked up after a police chase with

Maurice Clarett's bond on a charge of carrying a concealed weapon was set at $5 million Thursday, a day after the former Ohio State running back was arrested following a chase with police and four loaded guns were found in his sport-utility vehicle.

from your source: http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/cs-0608110204aug11,1,7151406.story?coll=cs-football-print

A little more background on the circumstances surrounding Clarett's current arrest from CNN:

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Maurice Clarett was arrested early Wednesday after a highway chase that ended with police using Mace on the former Ohio State running back and finding four loaded guns in his truck, a police spokesman said.

Officers used Mace to subdue Clarett after a stun gun was ineffective because the former Fiesta Bowl star was wearing a bullet-resistant vest, Sgt. Michael Woods said.

"It took several officers to get him handcuffed," Woods said. "Even after he was placed in the paddy wagon, he was still kicking at the doors and being a problem for the officers."

***

Clarett, 22, is currently awaiting trial on two counts of aggravated robbery, four counts of robbery and one count of carrying a concealed weapon in a separate case. Authorities said he was identified by witnesses as the person who flashed a gun and robbed two people in an alley behind the Opium Lounge in the early hours of Jan. 1.
more at: http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/08/09/clarett.arrested.ap/index.html

[nealmhughes]

6. The judge did not release her since she had fled across state lines and

shot her husband in the back. He considered her a flight risk. At first, there was a problem with anyone issuing a bail that high, as bondsmen considered her a flight risk and I doubt anyone wanted to put up 3/4 Million on her...
The story was live on Huntsville TV this evening, she was the last on his docket, as he had trials and arraignments underway when CNN reported this.