Sounds like the foundation for a great negative Ad campaign:

Instead of "Jaunt with Jim", it's "Amnesty with Amy"

But you neglect to mention the important fact that Klobuchar's office asked for $2 million bail -- and it's the judge who set it at $750,000. See Lakeshore Weekly News story at http://www.weeklynews.com/main.asp?SectionID=10&SubSectionID=10&ArticleID=1070

The problem is not with the Hennepin County prosecutor. It lies with a system that would allow not only people like Jeff Skelton out on minimal bail, but people like Joseph Duncan (who kidnapped Shasta and Dylan Groene) and Alfonso Rodriguez (Dru Sjodin's killer) out time and time again. We need to do something about the revolving door that has become the judicial system in Minnesota. We need to be less worried about the rights of people who want to harm us and our kids and more concerned about the rights of our innocent children.

All:

Good points about the sysem and Amy Klobuchar's responsibility (and where it ends).

I was hasty in pinning it on Klobuchar.

Now - when it comes time to charge Skelton, we'll see...

Paul: You are correct, but what's your point? Skelton was an admitted murderer, who confessed on WCCO radio, and had shoved his wife out of a speeding boat the night before. He should not have seen bail the FIRST time. Klobuchar's office should have demanded he be remanded to jail until trial. Then...he breaks the conditions of his bail. Again, why ask for bail? All Klobuchar did was open the door for the judge to allow a reduced bail. And that is exactly what happened. The judge looked at the request, saw the county attorney said bail was fine...and all that was left was to haggle over the number.

Klobuchar's office is responsible for this, by not demanding he be held in custody. Period.

You might want to take a look at the Minnesota Constitution. In MN, every defendant awaiting trial has a constitutional right to bail. In fact, the Constitution specifically states: “Excessive bail shall not be required.”

So go ahead and blame the Constitution, instead of Klobuchar.

http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/cco/rules/mncon/mncon.htm

CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA
ARTICLE I
BILL OF RIGHTS
…
Sec. 5. NO EXCESSIVE BAIL OR UNUSUAL PUNISHMENTS. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishments inflicted.

Wow, Paul. You're a real Perry Mason, aren't you? Unfortunately for you...State Statutes CLEARLY state:

629.16 Admit to bail.

Unless the offense with which the prisoner is charged is
shown to be an offense punishable by death or life imprisonment
under the laws of the state in which it was committed, a judge
in this state may admit the person arrested to bail by bond,
with sufficient sureties, and in such sum as the judge deems
proper, conditioned for the person's appearance before the judge
at a time specified in the bond, and for the person's surrender,
to be arrested upon the warrant of the governor of this state.

Last time I checked, Paulie...murder tends to qualify as one of those crimes that does carry with it a life imprisonment sentence.

Nice try, but this case STILL falls at the feet of Amy "Catch-and-Release" Klobuchar. Even a non-lawyer can figure this out.

And Paulie, just so you know, the word "Unless" is important in that statute. "Unless" means the bail statutes can be excluded for crimes that rise to the level of life imprisonment.

If you don't like it, petition the legislature to change the law so you and Amy can have more murderers out on bail. Until then, Amy Klobuchar is allowing an admitted murderer walk the streets. Sleep well on that one.

I'm the chief deputy in the county attorney's office and I received a call asking for clarification of the bail issue raised on your blog. The Minnesota Constitution states in Article I, Section 7 that "All persons before conviction shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, except for capital offenses when the proof is evident or the presumption great." In 1958, the Minnesota Supreme Court, in a case titled State v. Pett, held that "capital offenses" are only those punishable by death, and because of the abolition of the death penalty in Minnesota, we no longer have capital offenses in Minnesota. The court's ultimate conclusion was "As the Constitution now reads, all crimes are bailable." It was also noted that to change that rule, you can't just amend the state statutes, you also have to amend the Constitution. If you would like to read the opinion, it is at 92 N.W2d 205.

By the way, 629.16 applies to extradition cases, not crimes committed in Minnesota. The general bail statute is at 629.53. However, even if 629.16 applied to Minnesota cases, the Constitution, as interpreted by our Supreme Court, would still require a bail setting.

Our record in defendant's Skelton's case is clear. We have repeatedly asked for high bail and hope he will remain in custody pending trial.

I hope this sheds some light on the subject.

Jeff Skelton will kill more people if he is ever in the general population again. He is not done "making his statement". We elect officials to protect the innocent, they failed in this instance, since Jeff sent many signals before the murder that he would do something like this. He was true to his word, a freak with months of premeditation to work with. If he is given another chance, then the murders he will commit are the responsibility of the Minnesota justice system, plain and simple.

Pete:

I'll give you that bail might be required....the FIRST time. But after violating it TWICE? Sorry, after violating the terms of his bail TWICE, he presents an obvious danger to society. Or at least a clear and present danger to his wife, who can't swim and whom he dumped out of a speeding boat at 30mph the night before he plugged his victim.

And I did not note that the statute that I sited was specific for extradiction. I'll read it again, but there are other parts of the statutes that deal with holding criminals for extradiction.

structures hordes:Madames desert politer ... Thanks!!!

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