In Alabama, a judge turned down requests from prosecutors and people in the community to raise the bond for a man accused of attempted murder, meaning the suspect is still out of jail.
The shooting happened on Oct. 4 a little after 11:30 p.m., after the Morehouse-Tuskegee Classic college football game in Montgomery, Alabama. Montgomery Police Chief Jim Graboys stated that two people died and 12 were hurt, adding that only one of the 14 victims was the intended target. He said there were multiple shooters.
“This started because of an individual, one of these 14 (injured or killed), who we think was targeted, in which there was basically an exchange of gunfire,” Graboys said. “When that exchange occurred, many people in the crowd took out their own weapons and started shooting.”
Javorick Whiting, 19, one of the suspects, was arrested on Oct. 16 and charged with attempted murder related to the mass shooting. Court documents show that the suspect Whiting allegedly shot was last reported to be in critical condition.
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After being taken into custody, a judge set bond at $60,000, which Whiting was able to pay on Oct. 17 through a bail bond company, according to court records obtained by Fox News Digital.
After the community protested, prosecutors filed a motion to increase Whiting’s bond, arguing $60,000 was not enough.
“The current bond is clearly not enough to protect the public from this dangerous and violent criminal,” the DA’s office wrote.
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The DA’s office wrote that the 19-year-old’s actions show that he is a “danger to the community” and should therefore be in jail.
However, District Judge Michael Godwin denied the motion to increase bond, writing that prosecutors did not provide any new evidence. Godwin was not the judge who set Whiting’s $60,000 bond.
“The Court’s issue with the State’s request is that the State has not presented any new or additional information to the court that was not presented or available at the initial hearing when bond was discussed,” Godwin wrote.
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Republican Gov. Kay Ivey had previously shared her frustration in a Facebook post.
“Today, we are learning that one of the four suspects has been released back onto the streets,” Ivey wrote on Oct. 20. “This is the legal loophole that I and many in the Legislature wanted to close when I signed the Safe Alabama package. Next May, all Alabama voters will have the chance to end mandatory bail for those suspected of attempted murder by voting to expand Aniah’s Law. I will not forget this troubling news when I vote.”
Aniah’s Law was passed in 2019 to honor Aniah Blanchard, who was murdered in 2019 by someone who was out on bond for violent offenses. The law allows judges and prosecutors to deny bail for offenses like kidnapping, murder, rape, and aggravated child abuse.
Lawmakers recently passed a law that would add attempted murder to the list of eligible charges in Aniah’s Law, but it still needs to be approved by voters in the state.
