Bail denied for 4 defendants in Amish hate crime case!

A judge has the ability to deny bail to a defendant depending on the nature of the crime that has been committed. Earlier this year seven men were charged with hate crimes relating to the cutting of beards of Amish men which is a part of their culture. The group was found to have been cutting beards of men and hair of women in a forcible manner which appears to be influenced by cultural intolerance. The attacks initially occurred in September and a string of subsequent attacks has occurred since then.

The attacks were deemed as religiously motivated violence where bodily harm was caused with the use of a dangerous weapon. The assailants used scissors and electric clippers and forcibly restrained their victims to carry out the assaults. Amish tradition believes that the Bible dictates that women should grow their hair long and men should keep their beards unshaven after marriage. This story is a good example of how a judge can use their own discretion to deny bail bonds for a defendant.

The initial feud began when one religious leader named Samuel Mullet excommunicated or shunned eight members causing a flurry of religiously motivated feuding since 2005. Mullet has been accused by some of the peers in his community as someone who doles out harsh punishments to try to maintain discipline. One man stated that he was locked in a chicken coup for 12 days as a punishment for violating Amish traditions.

Cleveland Ohio his the second largest Amish community outside of Lancaster Pennsylvania. An estimated 61,000 Amish people live in the greater Ohio area. Although commonly on the outskirts of society, this news story was one which broke particular interest throughout many communities due to the obscure nature of the allegations and the public’s ignorance of the Amish culture.

Three of the seven suspects are scheduled to appear back in court however bail bonds services have been denied for the remaining four members. Three members have yet to await the judges decision on whether or not they can contact a bondsman to secure an early release from jail.

In some cases a judge weighs factors to determine the price of bail of a defendant and whether or not they are eligible to be released on bail bonds. If a defendant is deemed to be a potential flight risk, has committed a heinous crime or is a public safety risk a judge has a couple of options available to attempt to keep the defendant in custody. One method used is the complete denial of bail bonds for the defendant forcing them to await the outcome of their trail and sentencing in a county detainment center or city jail. The other option a judge has is to set the maximum bail bonds amount for the suspect in order to keep them in jail during the course of the trial.

In a case like this the judge decided to revoke the ability for the defendants to secure their release from jail due to this case being linked to a hate crime for religious discrimination. Follow us for more information on Los Angeles Bail Bonds and news on this industry.