Gov: Dangerousness must play larger role on bail
Gov. Charlie Baker said he plans to file a bill soon addressing how potentially dangerous criminal defendants are held during trial, citing concerns about recent violent incidents carried out by people released on bail.
“Dangerousness needs to be a much larger part of the way our courts make decisions,” Baker said yesterday, promising a bill in a month or two. “But I think we are probably going to have to put some changes in state law in place to make that happen.”
Under state law and a recent Supreme Judicial Court decision, judges are bound to set bail at affordable levels and only consider what is likely to ensure a defendant’s return to court.
Prosecutors can also request a dangerousness hearing to present evidence that the person is a risk to the community and have the defendant held during the trial.
The governor’s move comes as recent bail decisions are coming under fire — including dropping bail from $35,000 to $1,000 for Mickey Rivera, the Fall River man who later caused last weekend’s head-on crash that killed a Marine combat veteran who had just left his wife and newborn daughter at Cape Cod Hospital.
This spring, a Salem Superior Court judge set a low bail on accused Maine cop killer John Williams, who had previously been held on $10,000 cash bail after being arrested in March on firearms charges, only to have his bail cut in half to $5,000.
Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno is leading a push for bail reform after three bodies were found at Stewart R. Weldon’s Springfield home. The 40-yearold career criminal had been courtordered to wear a GPS device while out on bail on charges of assaulting a woman. He is now being held on $1 million bail.