Case Title: Altobella v. District Court

Citation: 385 P.2d 663

Docket Number: 

State: colorado

Court: Colorado Supreme Court

Date: 1963-09-03T00:00:00Z

Document:
385 P.2d 663 (1963) Donald ALTOBELLA, Petitioner, v. The DISTRICT COURT of the State of Colorado IN AND FOR JEFFERSON COUNTY, Respondent. No. 20895. Supreme Court of Colorado, En Banc. September 3, 1963. Bellinger, Faricy & Tursi, Pueblo, for petitioner. Robert K. Willison, Deputy Dist. Atty. for Jefferson County, Lakewood, for respondent. MOORE, Justice. This is an original proceeding in which the petitioner, Altobella, alleges that he was named defendant in an information filed in the Jefferson county district court, in which he was accused of the crimes of burglary, larceny and receiving stolen goods. In said action he was admitted to bail in the amount of $4,000.00. He further alleges the following: "That within the thirty minute to one hour period of tardiness, petitioner's bond was forfeited; he was held without bond for approximately one week and then had bond set at $100,000.00 *664 without any grounds whatsoever for such an increase in bond." Petitioner further alleges that he has requested the court to reduce the amount of bond and that the refusal of the district court to do so is "tantamount to holding him without bond," and is "such a gross abuse of discretion as to require intervention by this court." This court issued its Rule to Show Cause and in answer thereto respondent does not take issue with any fact alleged in the petition. As justification for raising the bond from $4,000.00 to $100,000.00 when the petitioner appeared from "thirty minutes to one hour late" on the day that had been set for trial, respondent in its answer says that: With this statement we are unable to agree and on the contrary hold, under the circumstances shown here, that the bond fixed by the court was grossly excessive and tantamount to a denial of the right of petitioner to be admitted to bail in a reasonable amount. Under the facts here shown a bond in the sum of $7,500.00 is reasonable and the district court is directed to forthwith admit the petitioner to bail in an amount not to exceed the sum of $7,500.00. Mandate shall issue forthwith in this action since no petition for rehearing could be presented which would justify any different disposition of the case. DAY, J., not participating.