A News 8 investigation has found some judges set bonds too low, helping some felons escape justice.
Hundreds of accused murderers, rapists, child molesters and drug traffickers in the country illegally have been deported prior to trial.
In 2007, Ruben Nunez was charged with possession of 12 kilo bricks of cocaine, which were allegedly hidden inside the panels of his car doors. The street value was more than $1 million and he faced 15 years to life.
A crime of that nature normally calls for a $250,000 bond, but the court set Nunez's bond at $5,000. He posted the bond and within hours was on his way to Mexico.
David Finn, a former Dallas County judge, said a clerical error may have contributed to the low bond.
The bonding process starts when a defendant is booked into jail and goes before a magistrate judge. Magistrates don't hear cases, but it's their job to determine charges and set the bond according to a bond schedule.
But, News 8 found magistrates set low bonds for some of the 11 drug suspects who were deported to Mexico over the summer before going to trial.
Rosalinda Paredes was among those deported. She was arrested with a large quantity of methamphetamine. Her charge called for a $100,000 bond, but it was only set at $10,000.
M. Boyd Patterson oversees the county's magistrate judges and said they have wide discretion.
"We will magistrate something this calendar year of 78-80,000 people through the center and mistakes can be made," he said.
News 8 reports have triggered a new county policy. Under the policy, illegal immigrants like Nunez would face an automatic $100,000 bond.
But, there's still one problem. Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE) can take days to establish who is illegal. In Nunez's case, he bonded out of the jail in a single day. He then escaped to Mexico before ICE immigration agents even knew he was in Dallas.
"It is my understanding that only one ICE officer works inside the jail, and for only a normal 40-hour week," Patterson said. "We operate 24-7-365. So, clearly the 16 hours of every day and the other 24 hours of each weekend day have no input from ICE."
E-mail dschechter@wfaa.com
