Background

• Relator Jennifer A. Tharp, the District Attorney of Comal County, seeks a writ of mandamus challenging a district court order permitting bail by a ten percent cash deposit.
• Real party in interest Lakisha Deshon Wilson is jailed pending trial on three-count indictment for organized criminal activity (fraudulent possession of identifying information), possession of identifying information, and burglary of a motor vehicle.
• Magistrate set bail at $35,000 for the first two counts and $20,000 for the third; district court reduced each bond by $5,000 to $30,000, $30,000, and $15,000 respectively.
• Immediately after the reduction, the district court sua sponte authorized a ten percent cash deposit into the court’s registry; the State objected to a differential bond and the court allegedly overruled the objection.
• Relator argues that the district court exceeded its statutory discretion by permitting a cash deposit less than the bond amount, conflicting with Article 17.02 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.

Issues

Key Cases Cited

• State ex rel. Vance v. Routt, 571 S.W.2d 903 (Tex. Crim. App. 1978) (mandamus to correct trial court's failure to follow controlling statutes)
• Texas Dep't of Pub. Safety v. Nail, 305 S.W.3d 673 (Tex.App.-Austin 2010) (trial court has no discretion to misinterpret or misapply statute)
• Professional Bondsmen of Tex. v. Carey, 762 S.W.2d 691 (Tex.App.-Amarillo 1988) (courts have no discretion to set differential bonds)
• Castaneda v. Gonzalez, 985 S.W.2d 500 (Tex.App.-Corpus Christi 1998) (courts cannot set differential bail bonds by type of bond)
• Frontier Ins. Co. v. State, 64 S.W.3d 481 (Tex.App.-El Paso 2001) (discussion of differential bonds and related authority)
• Allegheny Cas. Co. v. State, 52 S.W.3d 894 (Tex.App.-El Paso 2001) (additional consideration of split/differential bond concepts)