Summary
This Appellate Division decision addresses a petition for a writ of habeas corpus seeking the release of Michael Pena on his own recognizance or the setting of reasonable bail. The court sustained the writ and set bail at specified amounts, including an insurance bond, a partially secured bond, or a cash alternative. Release is conditioned upon the defendant surrendering all passports and providing affidavits waiving opposition to future extradition if he leaves the jurisdiction.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the writ of habeas corpus should be sustained and bail set under the specified conditions.
Holdings
- The writ is sustained; bail is set at $75,000 insurance bond, $150,000 partially secured bond with 10% down, or $75,000 cash bail, conditioned on passport surrender and an affidavit waiving extradition rights.
Key quotations
“ADJUDGED that the writ is sustained, without costs or disbursements, to the extent that bail ... is set in the sum of $75,000 posted in the form of an insurance company bail bond, the sum of $150,000 posted in the form of a partially secured bond, with the requirement of 10% down, or the sum of $75,000 deposited as a cash bail alternative, on condition that ... Michael Pena shall (1) surrender all passports ... and (2) provide an affidavit ... waiving the right to oppose extradition.” (at 1)
Factual background
Michael Pena is incarcerated in the Eric M. Taylor Center. The People, ex rel. David Louis Cohen, filed a writ of habeas corpus seeking his release on his own recognizance or, alternatively, bail. The court considered conditions for bail, including bond amounts and passport surrender.