The Brief
A judge gave a defendant with a violent crime a PR bond, even though it is now prohibited by law.
351st Criminal District Court Judge Nata Cornelio gave Jared Wilson a personal recognizance bond, or get out of jail free card.
Wilson is on deferred probation after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery. According to court documents, he continuously violated the terms of probation.
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - 351st Criminal District Court Judge Nata Cornelio gave Jared Wilson a personal recognizance bond, or get out of jail free card, even though he's charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.
What they're saying
"That's a no, no. Because we enacted a law, better known as Senate Bill 6, that eliminated most violent crimes, including aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, from being eligible for a PR bond," said Andy Kahan with Crime Stoppers. "You can't be doing this. It's a violation of the statute. You can't give a PR bond, bottom line, to anyone for a charge of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, but it happened."
FOX 26 asked former Criminal District Court Judge Chuck Silverman what could happen to a judge who defied state law. He can't speak about a particular judge or case. "Hypothetically, in the event you feel a judge has abused his or her discretion or hasn't followed the law, you can file a complaint with the judicial commission and proceed that way."
Wilson is on deferred probation after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery.
According to court documents, he continuously violated the terms of probation.
He picked up two new felony charges while free from jail on the PR bond: possession of a prohibited weapon a machine gun and tampering with evidence.
Judge Cornelio made headlines last year after prosecutors say she secretly arranged for an MRI for death row convict Ronald Haskell behind the state's back. Haskell killed six of his relatives in 2014.
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