AL - Karen Shahan, 53, murdered, Homewood, 23 July 2013 #2

New Posts

Former Homewood pastor charged in wife's murder seeks bond no higher than $30,000

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Attorneys for the former Homewood pastor charged with murder in his wife's stabbing have filed several motions, including one asking a judge to set bond.

The motion seeking bond says that he is not a flight risk and would be willing to accommodate special conditions, such as remaining in the state, house arrest or electronic monitoring. Shahan has requested a hearing to address the issue of setting bond.
Click to expand...
 
According to court filings, Shahan has no prior criminal record and has held a job throughout his life and since his arrest.

The filings assert that neither Shahan nor his attorneys knew that law enforcement had obtained an arrest warrant. If they had known before Shahan left for Nashville, he would have voluntarily turned himself in.

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2014/01..._1.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Click to expand...

Two questions, Shahan has held a job since his arrest? 1st paragraph

Are you supposed to let a defendants attorney's know ahead of time you plan on arresting them? 2nd paragraph

I guess I need to follow more arrest! :scared:
 
$30,000?

You have got to be kidding! That takes cojones
 
And does that mean that he only actually has to come up with $3,000 - plus some fees - for a murder charge?


Obtaining a Murder Bond

The defendant can use the services of a bonding agency to obtain a surety bond for release. In most states, a defendant must pay the bonding agency 10% of the total bond fee – and the agency will charge additional fees for the bond issuance and bond services.
Click to expand...

http://www.superpages.com/supertips/murder-bond.html
 
Let's see ... he has no job/income and he moved out of the home. If he can't leave the state, he can't stay with either son. I don't know how they determine flight risk.
 
CountryGirl said:
Former Homewood pastor charged in wife's murder seeks bond no higher than $30,000

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Attorneys for the former Homewood pastor charged with murder in his wife's stabbing have filed several motions, including one asking a judge to set bond.
Click to expand...

Oh, PLEASE...hope it's a couple million. Better yet, no bond at all--I'd hate for him to have the opportunity to kill himself.
 
Jewels53 said:
Two questions, Shahan has held a job since his arrest? 1st paragraph

Are you supposed to let a defendants attorney's know ahead of time you plan on arresting them? 2nd paragraph

I guess I need to follow more arrest! :scared:
Click to expand...

Maybe he's still employed by BMI? Typo? (since the murder?) I don't know. I know sometimes defense attorneys are told in advance that a warrant is coming so the defendant can turn himself in, but in this case, I think they were afraid RS would flee anyway since he had been announcing his trip for several weeks. If the defendant is photographed walking into the police department wearing handcuffs, it really makes them look guilty. If they can turn themselves in without notifying the press, they can sneak in without being photographed.
 
Interesting:
The body of Shahan's wife was discovered about 11:15 a.m. inside the family's Hugh Circle home. Though sources told AL.com early in the investigation that the victim was stabbed, Homewood police didn't publicly confirm that.
Click to expand...
 
Wow...

While defendants in capital cases are often held without bond, the bond schedule for murder is between $15,000 and $75,000. Defendants charged with other offenses can be held without bond under certain circumstances, at a judge's discretion.
Click to expand...

Guess that explains why his lawyer is asking for 30,000! Unbelievable.
 
Can someone explain to me how this bond system works? As I understand it you have to put 10% in cash and can get the other 90% from a bail bondsman. So how much do you pay the bail bondsman back? Do you have to pay weekly or wait until your court case and then pay back the 90% plus a great deal of interest? Can someone please help me understand this system. Thanks in advance.
 
If you show up for your trial you don't have to pay the 90%. Bail is just to guarantee you will not flee. If you flee the bondsman can go after you. Bail bondsmen usually want something of value they can slap a lieu on should you take off. I believe that is how it goes. jmo
 
Sure seems that the prosecution could argue (flight risk).
 
Elley Mae said:
Sure seems that the prosecution could argue (flight risk).
Click to expand...

I believe they will. What we don't know is if LE tried to contact RS's attorney and advise him that they did not want him leaving town because they may have more questions. That does not alter their investigation and LE is within their rights to ask him not to leave at this time. The Chief admitted they knew RS planned on leaving so when did they know and why wasn't a warrant issued before RS scheduled his flight. I don't think Homeland Security waits until you are ready to board a plane to alert them, at least I hope not. I would tend to believe they might have known when he purchased his ticket and it was immediately flagged. This may be why the warrant was issued on the 31st. Unless, of course, Homeland Security could not be notified until the warrant was issued. If that is the case it seems to me LE cut it really close.

The fact that LE considered RS as fleeing and would stop him from getting bail becomes more interesting as to how this actually went down. Hopefully the judge will allow a camera in during the hearing. I'd like to hear the charges first hand and what the judge has to say rather than hear it second hand through a reporter. jmo
 
I think it's ridiculous on a murder case that they can be bonded out, and $30,000 is ridiculous imo. Of course he is a flight risk!! Yes, the trip was already planned (a bit convenient ya think & a 3 yr assignment I believe), but I do not think MOST people, like 99.9%, would be leaving the country to start new ministry after wife is murdered and no killer found!! That does not make sense to me, and I have been around ministry& in church for a lot of years!! Just my opinion and thoughts...
 
To me it is clear why Shahan is said to have attempted to flee justice.

He was told by LE to ‘stay put’. He chose not to stay put. Simple as that.

However, because of the open investigation into his wife's death, detectives told him to stay put.
Click to expand...

http://www.wate.com/story/24347730/alabama-pastor-arrested-in-nashville


LE had no obligation to inform him or his attorney of their progress in the investigation.

If Shahan and his attorney want to skirt around the issue with comments like ‘it was common knowledge that Shahan was leaving’ and ‘LE didn’t tell us there was a warrant’, then that seems like a weak defense to me. They evidently did not consult directly with LE about the overseas mission, which is what they should have done to geniunely ensure Shahan wasn’t going to be detained at the airport.

They took a chance, and it failed. IMO

Now they are taking a chance on a flimsy $30,000 murder bond. We'll see if that fails too.
 
HistoryProfessor said:
I think it's ridiculous on a murder case that they can be bonded out, and $30,000 is ridiculous imo. Of course he is a flight risk!! Yes, the trip was already planned (a bit convenient ya think & a 3 yr assignment I believe), but I do not think MOST people, like 99.9%, would be leaving the country to start new ministry after wife is murdered and no killer found!! That does not make sense to me, and I have been around ministry& in church for a lot of years!! Just my opinion and thoughts...
Click to expand...
Unless he is guilty! Totally agree! He may claim that he would have turned himself in...and if he had turned himself in, then he wouldn't be asking for a bond hearing. I think he's determined to do what he set out to do. Go to Russia without her! :scared:
 
I'm not saying I think he's innocent, but if some psycho killed my husband and I got locked up for questioning I'd hate everyone and might even want to leave everything including this country. He already had the trip planned though, so it wasn't out of fear, depression, or anger.
 
It all depends on whether or not RS was officially told to stay put. I don't recall the Chief ever saying in his press conference that RS had been instructed not to leave town. If that were true LE should have been able to bring him back once he left for Kentucky. RS has had an attorney since August so it's not as if LE was not aware he had counsel. Why wait until the 31st to get a warrant issued unless the warrant was issued because of the fact that he was leaving the country. This part is what is puzzling. jmo
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 100 more.
Total: 2,131 (members: 101, guests: 2,030)

Online statistics

Members online
101
Guests online
2,030
Total visitors
2,131
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
594,854
Messages
18,013,764
Members
229,532
Latest member
Sarti
Back
Top