San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Cara D. Hutson, excoriated for not keeping William McKay behind bars, made a plausible but perhaps impractical decision, experts say.
It’s every judge’s nightmare: San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Cara D. Hutson reduced bail for a career criminal awaiting sentencing on a third strike, allowing him to secure his release and then go on to allegedly kill a sheriff’s deputy.Dec. 29 killing of Deputy Isaiah Cordero
But an analysis of court documents and interviews with legal experts shows there’s more to the story. Hutson found McKay guilty of false imprisonment, making threats likely to result in great bodily injury, evading arrest and receiving stolen property, resulting in a third strike and leaving him susceptible to a sentence of 25 years to life. She acquitted him of two more serious kidnapping charges and reduced his bail accordingly from $950,000 to $500,000 — which McKay told the judge he could not afford.
Added Tinto: “There’s no indication the judge didn’t do what a judge is supposed to do: evaluate the facts, evaluate the criminal history and consider bail.” In March 2021, Little told San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies she was asked by McKay to house-sit and feed his dogs while he was in custody on an unrelated case.
Later that month, the California Highway Patrol tried to pull McKay over for driving a stolen vehicle, but he led officers on a 20-mile pursuit. He and a passenger, Abrianna Valerie Gonzalez, abandoned the car when it became disabled and fled on foot, armed with knives. They were arrested after Gonzalez stabbed a police dog, which had to be airlifted to a hospital, the CHP said at the time.
When the car became disabled, McKay fled with a gun in his hand. After initially disobeying orders to drop the gun, McKay finally tossed it aside and surrendered to police, records show.
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