Can’t Make Bail, Sit in Jail Even Longer Thanks to Coronavirus
“Curtis Holly broke into tears as the judge in Manhattan criminal court announced that he had to put up bail or sit in jail. Charged with choking his wife during a fight the night before, Holly declared through his lawyer that he was too poor to afford bail and too sick to go into the Rikers Island jail complex, where a COVID-19 outbreak is underway,” reports Simone Weichselbaum in The Marshall Project.
“Holly says he has an immune disorder, asthma and an infected gunshot wound to his leg. The prosecutor calmly detailed Holly’s several felony convictions, and said that while the victim didn’t want to press charges, the photographs of her injuries justified bail of $25,000. The judge reduced it to $5,000, but eight days after his court appearance Holly remained in jail.”
“With courts across the country, largely closed by the coronavirus, defendants recently charged with felonies can expect long waits for justice. Whether they spend that time in a possibly virus-infested jail cell or at home depends on where they get arrested.”
