Charles Cole v. State of Indiana, 997 N.E.2d 1143

Charles Cole was arrested for possession of methamphetamine; initially bonded at $2,500 surety at a July 31, 2013 initial hearing.
The State filed a motion asking to continue while lab results were pending; charge formalized as a Class D felony on August 2, 2013.
At the August 5, 2013 hearing the court re-advised Cole, entered a not guilty plea for him, and again set bond at $2,500 surety.
Cole provided an Indianapolis address, testified he did odd jobs and could maybe pay $150 toward bond; defense sought a reduction to $1,500; the State declined to seek any change.
The court, aware of Cole’s extensive criminal history (multiple prior felony convictions, including two Class C felonies in 2010), sua sponte increased bail to $10,000 surety.
Cole appealed, arguing the court abused its discretion by increasing bail without the statutorily required showing of good cause or presentation of new evidence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether trial court abused discretion by increasing bail to $10,000 sua sponte	State: bail increase was within the court’s discretion given criminal history and community safety concerns	Cole: increase was improper because State did not request it or present new evidence; statutory good-cause requirements not met; amount excessive	Reversed: court abused its discretion; increase improper because statutory procedures for altering bail were not satisfied

Sneed v. State, 946 N.E.2d 1255 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011) (standard that bail amount is reviewed for abuse of discretion)
Perry v. State, 541 N.E.2d 913 (Ind. 1989) (discussion of trial court discretion in bail decisions)
Hobbs v. Lindsey, 162 N.E.2d 85 (Ind. 1959) (bail is excessive if higher than reasonably calculated to assure presence in court)
Samm v. State, 893 N.E.2d 761 (Ind. Ct. App. 2008) (bond outside local schedule is not presumptively unreasonable)
Mott v. State, 490 N.E.2d 1125 (Ind. Ct. App. 1986) (treating bond schedule context and trial court discretion)