Order in the courtroom!
Order in the courtroom isn’t just the behavior of the people; there are also rules in place for judges to adhere to in all cases. Those rules help protect the rights of everyone in the courtroom, including the accused.
“We know the defendant has rights, regardless of what they’ve done or how heinous it is,” stated Judge Terry Bonner. “They have rights and are innocent until proven guilty. It doesn’t matter what the charges are and how we feel about it.”
One of the most misunderstood things that judges have to do is set bonds for those who are arrested. Most of the time, the community seems to believe that the more heinous a charge is, the higher the bond should be for the individual. That isn’t how that works, though.
“Bond is not a form of punishment,” explained Judge Bonner. “It is simply a way to help guarantee that the accused appear for court. We cannot use bond as a punishment because they haven’t been convicted of anything at that time.”
When the judges do set bond, they are required to follow Rule 8.2 from the Rules of Criminal Procedure given to them from the Mississippi State Supreme Court. In fact, for individuals who are citizens of the community, the first suggestion according to Rule 8.2 is to simply release the individual. If the judge chooses to issue a bond, then the judge has to take the following things into account:
1. The age, background and family ties, relationships and circumstances of the defendant
2. The defendant’s reputation, character, and health
3. The defendant’s prior criminal record, including prior releases on recognizance or on unsecured or secured appearance bonds, and other pending cases
4. The identity of responsible members of the community who will vouch for the defendant’s reliability
5. Violence or lack of violence in the alleged commission of the offense
6. The nature of the offense charged, the apparent probability of conviction, and the likely sentence, as these facts are relevant to the risk of nonappearance
7. The type of weapon used
8. Threats made against victims or witnesses
9. The value of property taken during the alleged commission of offense
10. Whether the property allegedly taken was recovered or not, and damage or lack of damage to the property allegedly taken
11. Residence of the defendant, including consideration of the real property ownership, and length of residence
12. In cases where the defendant is charged with a drug offense, evidence of selling or distribution activity that should indicate a substantial increase in the amount of bond
13. Consideration of the defendant’s employment status and history, the location of defendant’s employment, and the defendant’s financial condition
14. Sentence enhancements, if any, included in the charging document
15. Any other fact or circumstance bearing on the risk of nonappearance or on the danger to others or to the public
While taking all of these things into account, the judges have to hear both sides of the story, not just one side.
“We have to be patient and hear the other side. We have to be the court regardless. We can’t be the police. We can’t be the attorneys,” explained Judge Tobey Bartee. “We have to be the court, and we have to get it right. We only go on what they give us. People in the community are not privy to all the information we have when we set the bonds.”
When they do set bonds, they are not supposed to set bonds too high; in fact, they have been warned against setting bonds too high.
“Judge Randolph met with us and warned us about setting high bonds,” said Judge Bartee.
In fact, since anyone who is brought before a judge for bond hasn’t been convicted, it would be an injustice to set an incredibly high bond. Plus, the judge can be carried before judicial performance if an unreasonable bond is set.
“If setting a high bond is the way you do business, and you have a wealthy defendant who can bond out and a poor defendant who can’t, that in itself is prejudicial,” explained Judge Bonner. “I’m not going to be carried before judicial performance about a bond amount. I’m not going to be brought before our local circuit judges about a bond amount. Everyone will get a bond amount that goes along with the guidelines of the rules of court.”
Rule 8.2 provides the judges with more than just things to take into consideration when setting bonds. It also provides them with suggested bond amounts for different crimes. It ranges from low to high.
“We always go towards the bottom number first because this is one of the poorest counties in the state,” stated Judge Bonner.
The recommended range for both secured and unsecured appearance bonds is as follows:
Felonies
Capital felony $25,000 to No Bail Allowed
Manslaughter (or any other non-capital crime involving the loss of human life) $10,000 to $1,000,000
Drug Distribution and Trafficking $5,000 to $1,000,000
All other non-capital felonies
• Punishable by maximum 20 years or more
• Punishable by maximum 10 years to 20 years
• Punishable by maximum up to 10 years
$20,000 to $250,000
$10,000 to $100,000
$5,000 to $50,000
Misdemeanors
Punishable by maximum 1 year $500 to $2,000
Punishable by maximum 6 months $250 to $1,000
Punishable by less than 6 months $100 to $500
Punishable by fine only $50 to maximum fine/costs
Misdemeanor DUI and DWLs $500 to $2,000
Municipal Ordinance Violations $100 to $1,000
Both Judge Bonner and Judge Bartee have made a point to go by the guidelines provided when setting bonds for anyone brought before them. They make sure to set bonds only on the evidence provided and not use it as a tool for punishment.
Judges have a huge responsibility each day to make sure that justice and fairness is shown to every individual. It is important to remember that the judges are aware of different evidence and information that is not open to the public when they are setting bond amounts.
