DAVID WILLIAM FRETWELL, PETITIONER,
v.
HONORABLE R.T. "TIM" DOBECK, SHERIFF OF INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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The court held that the trial judge should substantially reduce the defendant's bond, citing the lack of strong evidence and the defendant's community ties.
The defendant, charged with trafficking in cannabis, sought a writ of habeas corpus due to an inability to make a $150,000 bond. The evidence against …
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LETTS, Judge.
This defendant, charged with trafficking in cannabis in excess of one hundred pounds, is in jail because he cannot make a $150,000 bond. He now files this petition for a writ of habeas corpus. He has never been convicted of, or even charged with, a prior crime and is a lifelong resident of this particular judicial circuit. He has steady gainful employment there and his mother, father, brother and two sisters also live in the community.
Perhaps most importantly, the record, so far, does not reflect a strong case against him. The defendant was a passenger in a small plane, flying without lights at night, which was being shadowed by law enforcement aircraft. Apparently, unidentifiable objects were seen to be jettisoned from the plane over water and never recovered. Law enforcement presumles the objects were contraband and we would agree that is probably a safe assumption. However, the record is devoid of any proof as to the identity of the objects except for the discovery, after minute search of the plane, of one lone marijuana seed. Finally, this defendant demonstrated that he could not come up with a $150,000 bond.
We are reluctant to trespass in an area normally left to the trial judge’s discretion, but we conclude that the trial judge should substantially reduce this bond in accord with the precepts of Judge Glickstein’s exhaustive opinion in Good v. Wille, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980).
Accordingly, we grant the writ, make it returnable before the circuit court and remand this cause for a further, and immediate, bond reduction hearing at which time the judge must set reasonable bail, unless it can be shown that the circumstances have substantially changed.
WRIT GRANTED AND CAUSE REMANDED.
DELL and WALDEN, JJ., concur.
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Rawls v. State, 540 So. 2d 946 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989)…story, length and stability of his residence in the community, past criminal convictions, and record of appearing or failing to appear at prior court proceedings. See § 903.046, Fla.Stat. (1987); Rule 3.131(b)(3), Fla.R. Crim.P.; Fretwell v. Dobeck, 473 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985); Good v. Wille, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980); Stansel v. State, 297 So. 2d 63 (Fla. 2d DCA 1974). An accused who seeks a reduction in bail must adduce evidence sufficient to overcome the presumption of correctness of the t…
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Alvarez v. Crowder, 645 So. 2d 63 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994)…d to a presumption of correctness, an appellate court will grant relief where the petitioner demonstrates that the amount of bail set is unreasonable under the circumstances. See Good v. Wille, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980); Fretwell v. Dobeck, 473 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985). Depending upon the financial circumstances of the defendant, excessive bail is tantamount to no bail. Good, 382 So. 2d at 410. Although there might be a concern of flight, the one million dollar bail in the instant case is clea…1 / 2
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Camara v. State, 916 So. 2d 946 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005)…d to a presumption of correctness, an appellate court will grant relief where the petitioner demonstrates that the amount of bail set is unreasonable under the circumstances. See Good v. Wille, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980); Fretwell v. Dobeck, 473 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985). It is also settled that excessive bond, depending on the financial resources of the defendant, is tantamount to no bond at all. Winer v. Spears, 771 So. 2d 621, 622 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000); Mesidor v. Neumann, 721 So. 2d 810 (Fla. 4t…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Finlason v. Finlason, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980)
- Good v. Wille, 382 So. 2d 408 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980)