Case Name: Gail WINER, Petitioner, v. Lois SPEARS, Director, Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, Respondent
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 2000-11-22
Citations: 771 So. 2d 621
Docket Number: No. 3D00-2788
Parties: Gail WINER, Petitioner, v. Lois SPEARS, Director, Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, Respondent.
Judges: Before COPE, SHEVIN and SORONDO, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 771
Pages: 621–624

Head Matter:
Gail WINER, Petitioner, v. Lois SPEARS, Director, Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, Respondent.
No. 3D00-2788.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.
Nov. 22, 2000.
Bradford M. Cohen, for petitioner. Robert A. Butterworth, Attorney General, and Regine Monestime, Assistant Attorney General, for respondent.
Before COPE, SHEVIN and SORONDO, JJ.

Opinion:
SHEVIN, Judge.
We grant the petition of Gail Winer for a writ of habeas corpus for reduction of pre-trial bond, reverse the bond amount set by the court, and remand this case to the trial court to determine a reasonable bond after consideration of Winer's financial resources. See Elliot v. Jenne, 745 So.2d 1101 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999). Winer, who has no prior criminal record, has been charged with non-violent crimes, fraud and grand theft counts.
Winer has ties to the community; she has lived in South Florida for 26 years: she has been employed for many years during that time, and her son, a member of the United States Air Force, lives in Florida. E.g. Mesidor v. Neumann, 721 So.2d 810 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998); Brazil v. Jenne, 755 So.2d 784 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000). Winer presented evidence that her assets have been frozen by court order and she cannot post a $200,000 bond. "Excessive bail is tantamount to no bail and an appellate court will grant relief where the petitioner demonstrates that the amount of bail is unreasonable under the circumstances." Brazil, 755 So.2d at 784; Steel v. Jenne, 710 So.2d 993 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998).
Accordingly, we hold that the bond amount is unreasonable. Also, we note that as stated in Cameron v. McCampbell, 704 So.2d 721 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998), it would be helpful if the trial court would make findings with consideration of the statutory criteria when it resets the bond. This decision is effective immediately and its effectiveness will not be delayed by the filing of a motion for rehearing or other post-decision motion.
Petition granted, and cause remanded.
. We note, in passing, that there are other alternatives available for the trial court to consider, including: surrender of Winer's passport, electronic monitoring, daily reporting to pretrial sen/ices, and/or requiring as surety Winer's relatives' properties.