People in Houston have heard it before -- a suspect accused of a violent crime while out on bond, and then bond is set yet again. It's a continuous cycle, which many are fed up over.
Bearing the brunt of the blame from many local officials, law enforcement, and families who have lost their loved ones to senseless violence, are the judges who set those bonds.
ABC13 looked into different cases out of both Judge Hill and Judge Morton's courtrooms, where accused murderers were out on multiple felony bonds, set by the judges. While the judges can't comment on pending cases, they both made it clear that the law does not allow them to set bail as a way of keeping someone behind bars.
"I understand the frustration people would have when they're seeing somebody commit crime after crime after crime and they get bail after bail after bail," Judge Hill said. The judges say only the District Attorney's office can request the hearings to deny bond, while the District Attorney's office disagrees, calling the judges wrong.
"You have a judge who serves nothing more than a referee, as a judge we are tasked with the job of listening to the evidence and applying the law as it fits," Judge Hill said.Their different interpretations of the law, impact cases like Marcus Tucker, who accused of murder in 2019. Judge Hill set Tucker's bond seven times.
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