Cleveland, Ohio – An accused child-murderer in Ohio had their bail recently reduced from $500,000 to $50,000; allowing this accused killer to waltz out of jail.
Reports indicate that the woman who had her bail reduced was allotted such treatment over COVID-19 concerns.
India Rodgers was arrested, along with her then-boyfriend Jovan Switzer, for murdering her 3-year-old nephew back in October of 2018. The deceased child, Kemari Hampton, was placed into his aunt’s custody in October after he’d been in foster care since May of 2018.
Rodgers’ bond was originally set for half-a-million dollars, but suddenly was reduced to merely $50,000 on April 6th, allowing her to be released from jail on bond by April 8th. Apparently, the judge allowed for a bail reduction because Rodgers suffers from asthma and is at higher risk for COVID-19.
A former foster mother says she believes 3-year-old Kemari Hampton would still be alive if Ohio law didn’t require children services to seek next-of-kin as first choice for custody, no matter how long a child has been in foster care. https://t.co/3dRYVcn0y5
— News 5 Cleveland (@WEWS) September 3, 2019
Kristen Lowe, Kemari’s former foster-mom, is disgusted by the move set by the courts:
“That’s a very violent crime and [Rodgers] deserves to be sitting in jail.”
Lowe remembers when Rodgers’ attorney had been asking the courts since 2019 to have her bail reduced, and paraphrased the then-judge’s response:
“The judge looked at her and said, ‘This is murder. I’m not lowering your bail,’ So why now? It’s still murder.”
The courts were contact by local news outlet 19 News about the case and decision to lower Rodgers’ bond, to which they received the following response:
“As you may know, the Ohio Supreme Court’s Rule of Ethics forbid the Court from discussing open cases.”
In an effort to maybe douse concerns over the release of Rodgers, the courts also noted the release conditions:
“We can point out that the docket indicates a high bond and the defendant is required to be on GPS home monitoring.
The defendant, as noted in the April 5 defense filing, suffers from asthma, which, as noted, increases their medical risk. The release is also contingent on the defendant being in a home that is verified to not have children living in it.”
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Aside from the mandate pertaining to no children inside the home, the court’s mentioned conditions sound fairly identical to any number of people being released from jail awaiting trial.
There’s a reason why heinous crimes command a high bail amount. That’s because there’s the element of public risk that has to be considered. Accused child-murderers need not be released wantonly.
Thank goodness for people like Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. in New York, who fought to keep his inmate population in jail.
With the help of the New York Supreme Court, a sheriff in Suffolk County was able to keep his inmate population behind bars during the COVID-19 outbreak hitting New York.
What helped this sheriff accomplish this win with the court’s decision was pointing out that the jails were actually safer for the inmates than being released out into the streets to face the virus.
Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. appeared on Fox News on April 15th to discuss the NY Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of keeping his inmates in custody. With so many other cities, counties, and states releasing inmates over COVID-19 fears, he feels they’re safer in his jail:
“These men and women will then be returned back to the street without the proper health to really, one, monitor them and then, two, assist them in the issues that they’re facing.”
Suffolk Sheriff Errol Toulon: New York sheriff says releasing inmates poses greater risk of coronavirus infections https://t.co/mUnp2pP5bk #FoxNews @DrToulonJr
— Marc Bullaro (@MarcBullaro) April 15, 2020
In New York City, special interest groups have been suing prisons and jails, citing that keeping people in a jail during a pandemic is inhumane. However, this sheriff notes that simply releasing the inmates creates new problems rather than solving one:
“If you put them out into the street, especially with the issues, the pandemic issues that we’re currently facing, they will then have an opportunity to contract the virus.”
Where can we find more of this kind of sheriff? Perhaps he’ll consider being a judge one day? A man can hope, that’s for certain.
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