Err on side of public safety
Published 3:34 pm Thursday, January 7, 2010
With the murders of law enforcement officers hauntingly fresh in everyone’s minds, it’s reasonable that lawmakers — led by Rep. Mike Hope of Lake Stevens — Gov. Chris Gregoire and law enforcement groups are seeking a constitutional amendment that would give judges more leeway to deny bail.
Maurice Clemmons was under supervision by the state Department of Corrections when authorities say he shot and killed four Lakewood officers at a coffee shop before the start of their shifts on Nov. 29. Clemmons was killed by police after a two-day manhunt.
Six days before the shooting, he posted bail on charges of raping a child, a charge that could have potentially put him in prison for life under Washington’s “three-strikes” law.
Under the state Constitution, bail can only be denied in aggravated murder cases.
“Judges should have more discretion to deny bail when someone is inherently dangerous and there is a threat to public safety,” said Don Pierce, executive director of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.
Sadly, another nightmare case, lost in the shadow of the mind-numbing assaults on police, also illustrates the need for judges to exercise the discretion that is already available to them.
Isaiah Kalebu is accused of crawling through the open window of a South Park home in Seattle on July 19 and attacking Teresa Butz, 39, and her partner, a 36-year-old woman. Butz died after being stabbed multiple times. Her partner survived.
The attack came six days after a King County prosecutor went before Superior Court Judge Brian Gain to ask that Kalebu be returned to jail after being released on his own recognizance in August 2008. Prosecutors argued that Kalebu, originally charged with felony harassment of his mother, had now become a suspect in an arson that killed Kalebu’s aunt and her tenant.
Prosecutor Zac Hostetter asked Gain to remand Kalebu into custody “based on concerns of mental instability and Rachel Kalebu’s protection order filed just prior to the arson.” Gain denied the motion.
Originally, on April 9, Kalebu pleaded guilty to two counts of misdemeanor harassment and malicious mischief for the threats to his mother. On May 15, he was allowed to withdraw his guilty plea. On June 4, Kalebu appeared before Gain and his trial date was set. On July 9, Kakebu was questioned in connection with the arson/homicide.
After Kalebu missed his July 10 hearing, the King County Prosecutor’s Office asked Gain to issue a bench warrant for his arrest. Gain declined and reset the hearing for July 13, where he denied the motion to return Kalebu to jail. Six days later came the night of July 19.
