Benchwatch

People released from custody who were later charged with a violent crime

Each case names the judge or agency that made the release decision, the terms of release, and what happened next, with links to the news reports and court records it draws on.

Cases
25
Judges and agencies named
25
Median days from release to the new crime
94

Cases

Newest first
No photo
Victim
Manvir Singh
Defendant
Murder in Lodi, California

Two teens, ages 16 and 20

May 19, 2026, 1069 days after release
Border Patrol releaseUndocumented
Prior arrests
0
Released June 15, 2023 by U.S. Border Patrol (Arizona sector)
Catch-and-release pending immigration court

Singh's Freightliner semi jackknifed and struck multiple vehicles on northbound Highway 99 near Lodi. The big rig slammed into a Kia Forte carrying two young men, ages 16 and 20, both killed. Five others were injured. Singh fled the scene on foot before being captured. He was charged with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit-and-run resulting in death. ICE has lodged an immigration detainer.

Officer John Bartholomew
Victim
Alphonso Talley
Defendant
Murder in Chicago, Illinois

Officer John Bartholomew, 35

April 25, 2026, 136 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
6
Released December 10, 2025 by Circuit Court Judge John Lyke Jr.
Electronic monitoring (no cash bail under SAFE-T Act)

Talley and an accomplice allegedly robbed a Family Dollar in Chicago, beating cashier Maria Velazquez. When Bartholomew responded, Talley shot him. Later, while being transported for a CT scan, Talley pulled a hidden firearm from under his blanket and shot two officers, killing Bartholomew. Talley was on electronic monitoring under the SAFE-T Act, released by Judge Lyke in December 2025.

Zoe Welch
Victim
Ryan Camacho
Defendant
Murder in Raleigh, North Carolina

Zoe Welch, 32

January 12, 2026, 272 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
20
Released April 15, 2025 by District Court Judge Dorothy Hairston Mitchell
Charges reduced from felony to misdemeanor; released

Welch was found dead in her Raleigh home in January 2026 from blunt force trauma to the head. Camacho — free after Judge Mitchell's April 2025 reduction of his four felony breaking-and-entering charges to misdemeanors — was arrested and charged with her murder. The case has become a major issue in the 2026 NC Senate race involving Cooper.

Benjamin McComas
Victim
Donnie Allen
Defendant
Murder in Cleveland, Ohio

Benjamin McComas, 27

December 14, 2025, 6 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
9
Released December 8, 2025 by Municipal Court Judge Joy Kennedy
$5,000 bond (lowered from $15,000)

Allen allegedly shot McComas at a Cleveland RTA light rail station six days after his release. Allen had been bonded out via funds provided by The Bail Project, a national nonprofit, despite explicit warnings from his own family.

Bethany MaGee
Victim
Lawrence Reed
Defendant
Other in Chicago, Illinois

Bethany MaGee, 26

November 17, 2025, 94 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
72
Released August 15, 2025 by Various Cook County Judges Multiple Cook County Judges (Pending Full Identification)
Electronic monitoring (pretrial release)

On November 17 2025, Reed allegedly set Bethany MaGee on fire while she rode a CTA Blue Line train in the Loop. She survived with severe burns to more than half her body. Reed was on electronic monitoring for a separate offense at the time; an EM curfew-violation alert went out just after noon that day, hours before the attack. He was charged with federal terrorism in addition to state charges. MaGee was discharged from the burn ward in February 2026.

Annette Marie Valdez
Victim
Thomas Perales
Defendant
Murder in Westminster, Colorado

Annette Marie Valdez, 41

November 10, 2025, 7 days after release
Released by a judge
Prior arrests
7
Released November 3, 2025 by Judge Pending Identification
Personal recognizance

Perales is accused of killing Valdez approximately one week after his release from custody. The case has been cited in proposed legislation to tighten Colorado's pretrial release rules.

Nicola Tanzi
Victim
David Mazariegos
Defendant
Murder in Brooklyn, New York

Nicola Tanzi, 64

October 7, 2025, 89 days after release
Released by a judge
Prior arrests
33
Released July 10, 2025 by Criminal Court Judge Robert Rosenthal
Released on own recognizance (after charges downgraded)

Tanzi held a door for Mazariegos at the Jay Street-MetroTech station. Mazariegos turned and punched, kicked, and stomped on Tanzi's head 15 times, killing him on camera. He fled with Tanzi's credit cards. NYPD arrested him hours later in Times Square carrying a samurai sword. He has confessed to the killing.

Iryna Zarutska
Victim
Decarlos Brown Jr.
Defendant
Murder in Charlotte, North Carolina

Iryna Zarutska, 23

August 22, 2025, 219 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
14
Released January 15, 2025 by Magistrate Judge Teresa Stokes
Written promise to appear (no bail)

Brown pulled a folding knife from his hoodie and stabbed Zarutska three times from behind, including in the neck, as she sat looking at her phone on the train. She died at the scene. The attack was captured on surveillance video.

No photo
Victim
No photo
Defendant
Rape in Seattle, Washington

15-year-old girl (identity withheld)

May 4, 2025, 33 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
28
Released April 1, 2025 by Various King County Court Judges Multiple King County Judges (Pending Full Identification)
Multiple pretrial releases / failures to execute warrants

Kowalczewski allegedly approached the 15-year-old near a bus stop, forced her into a wooded area near the Northgate Transit Center, and raped her. He was arrested shortly after; bail was set at $1 million post-attack. He has pleaded not guilty.

Logan Federico
Victim
Alexander Dickey
Defendant
Murder in Columbia, South Carolina

Logan Federico, 22

May 3, 2025, 32 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
39
Released April 1, 2025 by Various SC Court Judges Multiple SC Judges (Pending Full Identification)
Multiple probation sentences and pretrial releases over a decade

Dickey killed Logan Federico in a random attack in Columbia, SC on May 3 2025. He was already on probation and had been arrested 39 times — 25 of those felonies — in the prior decade. His criminal history included a litany of missing fingerprints, incomplete charging documents, and lenient pleas. Bond was denied in Lexington County after the killing. Rep. Ralph Norman demanded SLED records and called for impeachment of the responsible solicitor.

Dylan Jackson
Victim
Deonta Rashad Harmon
Defendant
Murder in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Dylan Jackson, 22

March 22, 2025, 4 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
3
Released March 18, 2025 by Circuit Court Judge Jessica Fehrenbach
Stayed 60-day sentence, 24 months self-imposed probation

Four days after Judge Fehrenbach stayed his jail sentence for an in-custody felony battery, Harmon allegedly opened fire on Milwaukee's Water Street, killing 22-year-old Dylan Jackson and wounding two others. He was charged with first-degree reckless homicide, two counts of first-degree reckless injury, and felon in possession of a firearm. The case has drawn national attention to Fehrenbach's reform-minded sentencing record.

No photo
Victim
Michael Fuller
Defendant
Murder in Loveland, Colorado

Toni Fuller, 71

November 1, 2024, 22 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
5
Released October 10, 2024 by District Court Magistrate Jill Sage
$250 cash bail

Police conducted a welfare check after family members could not reach Toni Fuller. They found her dead from blunt and sharp force injuries. Her son Michael, free on $250 bond from his assault-on-officer case, was arrested at the scene.

Christa Gilley
Victim
Lee Gilley
Defendant
Murder in Houston, Texas

Christa Gilley, 38

October 7, 2024, released while facing this charge
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
0
Released November 15, 2024 by District Court Judge Pending Identification
$1,000,000 bond with GPS ankle monitor

Christa Gilley was strangled in her Houston home on October 7, 2024 while 9 weeks pregnant; her husband Lee called police claiming she had overdosed. He was charged with capital murder, then released on $1M bond. In May 2026, days before trial, he cut off his GPS ankle monitor, used a fake Belgian passport, and flew to Italy via Air Canada. Italian border police arrested him in Milan; he is seeking asylum to avoid extradition since Texas has the death penalty.

Jocelyn Nungaray
Victim
Franklin Jose Pena Ramos & Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel
Defendant
Murder in Houston, Texas

Jocelyn Nungaray, 12

June 17, 2024, 16 days after release
Border Patrol releaseAsylum pending
Prior arrests
2
Released June 1, 2024 by U.S. Border Patrol (El Paso sector)
Order of Recognizance with Notice to Appear

Jocelyn's body was found in a creek under a bridge in north Houston. Surveillance footage showed the two men walking with her for hours before the killing. Court documents allege she was tied up, her pants removed, and she was strangled. Both held on $10 million bond by Judge Josh Hill, who called the flight risk 'astronomical.'

No photo
Victim
Jesse Butler
Defendant
Rape in Stillwater, Oklahoma

Two minors (identities protected), 17

June 1, 2024, released while facing this charge
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
1
Released December 8, 2025 by Special Judge Susan Worthington
Youthful Offender Act reclassification — counseling, curfews, community service, supervision until age 19 (no prison)

Butler pleaded no contest to multiple counts of rape, sexual battery, and domestic assault and battery by strangulation of two female victims. Despite prosecutors seeking up to 78 years and recorded evidence of the assaults, Judge Worthington reclassified him as a youthful offender and sentenced him to probation, counseling, community service, and curfews — no prison time. Protests followed in Stillwater; a Marsy's Law motion was filed in December 2025.

NYPD Det. Jonathan Diller
Victim
Lindy Jones
Defendant
Murder in Far Rockaway, New York

NYPD Det. Jonathan Diller, 31

March 25, 2024, 345 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
14
Released April 15, 2023 by Queens Criminal Court Judge Pending Identification
$75,000 bail

Diller and his partner approached a parked car illegally stopped at a bus stop in Far Rockaway. Passenger Guy Rivera (separately, a parole-release case) shot Diller below his vest. Jones — the driver, free on $75K bail — had a loaded ghost gun in the glove compartment. After the killing Judge Maria Gonzalez found him a flight risk and remanded him without bail.

Lelawattie Narine
Victim
No photo
Defendant
Murder in Queens, New York

Lelawattie Narine, 52

March 22, 2024, 21 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
45
Released March 1, 2024 by Various NYC Court Judges Multiple NY Judges (Pending Full Identification)
Multiple pretrial releases over years

Bohler allegedly struck Lelawattie Narine with his motorcycle around 8:30 p.m. on March 22 2024 and fled. Narine, a 52-year-old cancer survivor walking as advised by her doctors, was killed. Bohler was charged retrospectively in October 2025 while already on Rikers Island for a separate machete attack on a dog owner.

Laken Riley
Victim
Jose Antonio Ibarra
Defendant
Murder in Athens, Georgia

Laken Riley, 22

February 22, 2024, 161 days after release
ICE detainer declinedUndocumented
Prior arrests
3
Released September 14, 2023 by Pending Identification (NYC + Athens)
Released by NYPD without ICE detainer

Riley was attacked while running on a wooded trail near Lake Herrick on the UGA campus. Ibarra struggled with her, beat her with a rock, and asphyxiated her. Surveillance footage and his thumbprint on her phone tied him to the crime. Convicted of malice murder on November 20, 2024 and sentenced to life without parole.

Rachel Morin
Victim
Victor Martinez-Hernandez
Defendant
Murder in Bel Air, Maryland

Rachel Morin, 37

August 5, 2023, 180 days after release
Border Patrol releaseUndocumented
Prior arrests
3
Released February 6, 2023 by U.S. Border Patrol (multiple encounters)
Title 42 removal (returned to Mexico, re-entered)

Morin was raped and beaten to death on the Ma & Pa trail. DNA linked the killer to the Los Angeles home invasion sexual assault months earlier. Martinez-Hernandez was captured in Tulsa OK in June 2024. Convicted April 2025 and sentenced to life without parole.

Kayla Hamilton
Victim
Walter Javier Martinez
Defendant
Murder in Aberdeen, Maryland

Kayla Hamilton, 20

July 27, 2022, 103 days after release
ICE detainer declinedUndocumented
Prior arrests
1
Released April 15, 2022 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
ICE declined juvenile detainer; released to MD CPS

Martinez forced his way into Hamilton's apartment, raped and strangled her. Her final moments were inadvertently recorded on her boyfriend's voicemail when she tried to call him as Martinez arrived. Pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in 2024. Sentenced by Judge Yolanda Curtin to life with all but 70 years suspended.

Brianna Kupfer
Victim
Shawn Laval Smith
Defendant
Murder in Los Angeles, California

Brianna Kupfer, 24

January 13, 2022, 782 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
11
Released November 23, 2019 by Charleston County General Sessions Judge Pending Identification
$50,000 bond (posted fraction)

Smith walked into the Croft House furniture store on La Brea Avenue and fatally stabbed Brianna Kupfer, who was working alone. He fled on foot; police found her body two hours later when a customer entered the store. Smith was on the run for a week before being captured in Pasadena. Convicted October 2024 and sentenced to life without parole.

Aniah Blanchard
Victim
Ibraheem Yazeed
Defendant
Murder in Auburn, Alabama

Aniah Blanchard, 19

October 23, 2019, 264 days after release
Released by a judgeUS citizen
Prior arrests
4
Released February 1, 2019 by Circuit Court Judge Pending Identification
Bond granted (charges not capital, bail mandatory at the time)

Blanchard disappeared from a gas station in Auburn, Alabama. Her remains were found weeks later in Macon County. Yazeed — free on bond for the Montgomery kidnapping/attempted-murder charges — was captured in Florida in November 2019 and convicted of her murder in March 2026. Sentenced to life in prison.

Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller
Victim
Wisner Desmaret
Defendant
Murder in Fort Myers, Florida

Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller, 29

July 21, 2018, 111 days after release
Released by a judgeUndocumented
Prior arrests
24
Released April 1, 2018 by Lee County Court / Twentieth Judicial Circuit Multiple Lee County Judges (Pending Full Identification)
Multiple pretrial releases / case dismissals over years

Jobbers-Miller responded to a report of a stolen cellphone. Desmaret struggled with him, took his service weapon, and shot him in the head. He died of his injuries five days later. Desmaret was found competent to stand trial in 2022 and convicted of first-degree murder in 2023. Sentenced to life without parole.

Edu Veliz-Salgado
Victim
Vicente Aguilera-Chavez
Defendant
Shooting in Sunnyvale, California

Edu Veliz-Salgado, 21

June 8, 2017, released while facing this charge
Released by a judge
Prior arrests
Not reported
Released October 31, 2025 by Superior Court Judge (retired, sitting on assignment) Hector E. Ramon
Released on own recognizance (no bail / $0)

On June 8, 2017, Veliz-Salgado, 21, was shot to death in the parking lot of Fair Oaks Plaza in Sunnyvale; a 24-year-old companion was wounded. The case went cold until 2024, when Sunnyvale DPS detectives, with help from the Santa Clara County DA, identified Vicente Aguilera-Chavez and Agustin Sandoval. Both were arrested January 9-10, 2025 and charged with murder, alleged to have killed Veliz-Salgado in the name of their gang. At an October 31, 2025 hearing, retired Judge Hector Ramon released Aguilera-Chavez on his own recognizance. The DA's office filed a motion to reconsider warning the court was 'gambling' on public safety. Ramon later released co-defendant Sandoval on the same terms.

Kate Steinle
Victim
Jose Inez Garcia Zarate
Defendant
Shooting in San Francisco, California

Kate Steinle, 32

July 1, 2015, 77 days after release
Sanctuary policyUndocumented
Prior arrests
7
Released April 15, 2015 by Ross Mirkarimi (Sheriff at time)
ICE detainer declined per SF sanctuary ordinance

Steinle was walking on Pier 14 with her father when she was struck in the back by a bullet that ricocheted off the concrete. Garcia Zarate said he found the gun (stolen from a federal agent's vehicle) wrapped in cloth under a bench and that it discharged accidentally. Acquitted of murder/manslaughter in 2017; convicted in federal court of being a felon in possession. Sentenced to time served.