A Texas teen accused of homicide was launched from police custody after his bond was drastically diminished from $800,000 to $100 per cost.
Stephon Martin Morson, 19, was launched from the Travis County Jail in Austin, Texas, on Saturday after he posted bail.
Morson is accused within the taking pictures loss of life of 20-year-old Keshawn Cage, who police discovered with a gunshot wound to the top again in October.
The Travis County Jail advised Fox Information Digital that Morson was booked on Nov. 6, 2024, and charged with homicide and tamper/fabricate bodily proof.
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Stephon Martin Morson, 19, of Austin, Texas, is charged with homicide, however out of jail after his bond was diminished from $800,000 to $100 per cost. (Travis County Jail)
His bond was initially set at $800,000, but it surely was just lately dropped to $100 for every cost, for a complete of $200, with the situations that Morson put on a GPS monitor, stay below home arrest and never contact the household of the sufferer or potential witnesses, CBS Austin first reported.
Austin Police Affiliation President Michael Bullock advised Fox Information Digital that Morson’s punishment was “not sufficient.”
“For a person accused of homicide to have his bond diminished so low that he’s capable of stroll free is a slap within the face to Austinites who might probably develop into the following sufferer. The revolving door of violent criminals continuously launched again onto the streets of Austin is precisely why we’ve got seen violent crime improve,” Bullock stated.
He added: “The District Legal professional, County Legal professional, and Judges right here have clearly demonstrated they don’t seem to be keen on taking care of the security of Austinites nor working with regulation enforcement. All they’re keen on is their very own political agenda. We’ve seen criminals launched on bond who, whereas free, kill somebody. The actual query is when will sufficient be sufficient?”
Bullock stated this isn’t the primary time Travis County judges and magistrates have drastically diminished bond for an individual accused of homicide or sexual assault.
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott described the discount of Morson’s bond and his subsequent launch as “outrageous.” (Brandon Bell/Getty Photographs)
“This isn’t unique to only one choose. This has occurred throughout a number of totally different courts,” Bullock stated. “We’ve had some the place they might not reoffend, however then we’ve had others who do reoffend. People who get out on bond they usually homicide another person after they’re already accused of a violent crime.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott additionally commented on Morson’s launch and known as the transfer “outrageous.”
“That is outrageous. It is why I made bail reform an Emergency Merchandise,” Abbott wrote in a put up on X.
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Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick additionally backed Abbott and stated he is able to play “hardball” to maintain violent offenders from being launched on bail throughout a particular session final week to go a bail reform bundle.
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick advocated for a bail reform bundle presently within the state legislature and stated violent offenders can’t be launched from jail on bond. (REUTERS/David ‘Dee’ Delgado)
On Wednesday, the payments cleared the primary of many obstacles to turning into regulation. The Senate Felony Justice Committee handed the bail reform bundle by a vote of 6-0.
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“I’m grateful that Gov. Abbott declared bail reform an emergency merchandise for the present legislative session. Too many harmless individuals, each residents and regulation enforcement officers, have develop into targets of criminals resulting from irresponsible bail quantities that permit violent criminals to go free,” Bullock stated. “We’re a nation of regulation and order, however activist judges and prosecutors which might be keen on their very own agenda fairly than the regulation are eroding that precept.”
Crime victims’ advocates in Texas have been making an attempt to get harder bail laws on the books for years, particularly in sure instances involving egregious crimes. In years previous, many prison offenders in Harris County have been launched on low bond or no bond in any respect, with some happening to reoffend, typically violently, in accordance with Rania Mankarious, the CEO of Crime Stoppers of Houston.
Fox Information Digital reached out to the Travis County District Legal professional’s Workplace however didn’t instantly obtain a response.
Fox Information Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
Stepheny Value is a author for Fox Information Digital and Fox Enterprise. Story ideas and concepts will be despatched to stepheny.worth@fox.com
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