Myles Harger, of Albuquerque, was arrested the night of September 23, 2017 for drug possession and bringing a knife to jail.
Harger was released and FREE TO GO under NM Bail Reform after the Arnold Foundation’s “Pretrial Risk Assessment” tool determined that he was not a danger to the community or a flight risk and therefore should not be subject to any accountable release – just a “promise” to appear.
The release is the result of newly enacted Supreme Court guidelines orchestrated by Chief Justice Daniels that virtually eliminates accountable pretrial release and bail.
Less than 12 hours later, Harger was back in jail – this time charged with stealing a car and crashing into a detectives car during a pursuit.
Once again, the Arnold Foundation PSA tool recommended the release of Harger without bail – just a “promise” to appear.
This time, however, Judge Victor Valdez was not happy with the recommendation and set a bail of $5,000 for Harger.
“The PSA is a guide. It’s not all telling or anything else,” Valdez said. “Clearly and apparently, the PSA wasn’t particularly accurate in this case because we have new charges. Therefore at this point, I’m declining to follow the PSA. There are no conditions other than a bond that’ll secure his appearance and compliance,” the judge said.
New Mexico Bail Reform, Risk Assessments, and Pretrial Services
Chief Justice Charles Daniels
- ZERO Accountability
- ZERO Deterrent
- ZERO Supervision
- ZERO concern for victims
- ZERO Bail…just a “pinky promise” to return
- Bail Reform – Dangerous, Reckless, and a Taxpayer Burden
RELATED:
One day after release from jail, man arrested again on new charges
(reported by KOB4 – Sept 27 2017)
A suspect accused of drug possession was only out of jail for 12 hours before he found himself back in handcuffs, accused of a brand new crime.
Police arrested Myles Harger Saturday night on drug charges and for bringing a knife into jail when he was booked. Then he was released on Monday evening.
However, he returned to jail the very next day on new charges. Police arrested Harger again at an Albuquerque motel after officers spotted him driving a stolen car. Harger is accused of trying to drive off, crashing into a detective’s vehicle and hitting the building. Detectives pinned the car in and apprehended Harger.
This time the judge wasn’t pleased. Judge Victor Valdez went back and forth with the public defender, who asked him to release Harger with no bond. That was also the recommendation of the public safety assessment tool known as the Arnold tool. But the judge wasn’t having it.
“The PSA is a guide. It’s not all telling or anything else,” Valdez said. “Clearly and apparently, the PSA wasn’t particularly accurate in this case because we have new charges. Therefore at this point, I’m declining to follow the PSA.”
Valdez cited the fact that Harger was picked up on new charges the day after he was released and set a bond of $5,000 cash or surety.
You’ve been LIED to New Mexico…NM Bail Reform is RECKLESS, DANGEROUS, and YOU are PAYING for it.
Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
thank you judge valdez for getting at the real issue- the tool is not the be all end all final word on getting out of jail. its the lazy judges being so damn lazy they don’t exercise any common sense or discretion and rely only on the tool. this is where we are getting into trouble! its the catch and release judges that need to e gotten rid of. its a good think judge valdez has been using his critical thinking skills and good judgement!