by Henry Stiepleman
SACRAMENTO – A Sacramento County man was appointed a public defender by a Sacramento County Superior Court judge last Wednesday, despite his claim that his father had been attempting to get him private legal representation.
The defendant, Daniel Toney, said he was unable to communicate with his dad because the jail where he is being held is on lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Toney was in court for willful disobedience of a court order, related to a previous case in which he had been charged with felony and a misdemeanor criminal threat, as well as a misdemeanor for vandalizing property.
When Superior Court Judge Scott Tedmon asked Toney if he had any legal representation he responded that his dad was looking, but because the jail he was being held in was on lockdown, he was unable to get in contact with his dad. Toney added that he had the money in his account and could afford private counsel.
Judge Tedmon then assigned Assistant Public Defender Anna Semerdjian to the case. The defendant did not object.
Semerdjian requested discovery as soon as she was assigned to the case. After only a brief glance of the discovery, Semerdjian requested that the defendant be released on zero bail.
The prosecutor, Renishta Lal, asked the court to continue Toney’s detainment.
Semerdjian argued that the emergency bail schedule set by the California Judicial Council, rescinded not long after Toney’s arraignment on Wednesday, applied in this case.
Defense counsel referenced the defendant’s record with the court to illustrate that he did not have a pattern of failing to appear in court. Counsel also noted that Toney’s father is disabled and relies heavily on his son to take care of him. Lastly, she noted that the matter at hand is a misdemeanor, not a felony.
Lal argued in opposition because the victims Toney’s of previous crimes were neighbors of his and had filed a restraining order against him. Additionally, she said, the victims claimed that the defendant had mental health issues and drank often.
Lal continued by providing two accounts of the defendant’s behavior toward the victims, including one where Toney burned out the tires of his truck in the street in front of the victim’s house and proceeded to enter their house and walk into their living room, from which the victim’s partner had forced the defendant out.
DDA Lal also noted that victims are “continually harassed by the defendant” by describing another instance in which one of the victims had been “crying and shaking” as she told the story.
According to the prosecutor, the victims had been in their house when Toney had appeared outside of their front door and said “I’m going to kill you. Open the door. I’m going to blow your f***king head off.”
The prosecutor went on to state that because the defendant’s house is in the same neighborhood as the victims from the previous case and because they suffered continued harassment, the court should set a reasonable bail.
Defense counsel made the point to the court that the defendant was released in the case Lal was referring to.
Judge Tedmon did not believe Toney was at risk of failure to not appear. But, according to Judge Tedmon, after considering the totality of the defendant’s conduct, the court considered him a threat to public safety and set his bail at $10,000.
Mr. Toney is expected to return to court on June 22 for a settlement conference.
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