Opinion ID: 2367192
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: de Veau

Text: Appellant de Veau contends that Chief Judge Moultrie abused his discretion by ordering her detained without bond. De Veau contends that she should have been released on her personal recognizance with the condition that she pursue psychiatric care. She states that because she is a life-long resident of the District of Columbia without a prior criminal record, the court erred by ordering her detained. Furthermore, she contends that the trial court erred by failing to consider the less restrictive conditions of detention under § 1321, when it instead improperly considered conditions under § 1322. The government responds that the trial judge did not err because the record shows that de Veau poses both a risk of flight and of danger to the community. Because de Veau has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, it contends that she poses both a danger to the community and a risk of flight due to her abnormal mental condition. Furthermore, the government observes that she would have a strong motive to flee since she will offer an insanity defense. If she is found guilty, she faces imprisonment, whereas if she is found not guilty by reason of insanity she faces possible indefinite hospitalization. It appears that the trial judge did not err by detaining de Veau without bond pursuant to § 1325(a) [14] because there is record support for the order. In accordance with § 1321(b), which is incorporated by reference into § 1325(a), Chief Judge Moultrie considered the available information, including such matters as the nature and circumstances of the offense charged, the weight of the evidence against such person, his family ties, employment, financial resources, character and mental conditions, past conduct, length of residence in the community, record of convictions, and any record of appearance at court proceedings, flight to avoid prosecution, or failure to appear at court proceedings. That information showed that de Veau was charged with the first-degree murder of her daughter and that the defendant did not deny committing the offense. Furthermore, de Veau was unemployed, and according to an entry in her diary made a short time before the murder, her daughter's presence was the only thing that kept her from leaving the District of Columbia. Though de Veau had no prior record, and had not missed any court appearances, this did not outweigh the representations about her unstable mental condition. Given this record, it is clear that Chief Judge Moultrie had sufficient reason to believe that none of the conditions of release listed in § 1321 would reasonably assure that de Veau would not flee or pose a danger to any other person or to the community. Because the order to detain is supported by the proceedings below, we affirm the order detaining de Veau pursuant to § 1325(a).