By Kalani Gaines
ALAMEDA – Being held in custody under multiple counts of burglary and possession of firearms, Jazzmin Barboza awaited her bail hearing at Alameda County Superior Court this week—her bail was $320,000.
In the end, she got some relief, but only about $5,000. The judge reduced the bail to a still hefty $315,000. And for someone with “no money,” according to her attorney, the $5,000 didn’t really matter at all.
Judge Barbara Dickinson held the plea hearing for Barboza’s charge of second degree commercial burglary that was committed on August 3 and August 9. 
Despite the charges, Barboza is not a physical danger to the public, argued Alameda Assistant Public Defender William Cole, adding that she has never been convicted of a felony and only has misdemeanors on record.
“She is charged with possession of firearms, but those are the only two cases that appear to have Mr. Meyer (her co-defendant) involved,” Cole said, adding “so she’s never been found with weapons in her possession outside those times.”
Deputy District Attorney Ashley Corvolth denied Cole’s claim that Barbazo does not pose a danger to the community; she recalled being present at the defendant’ previous hearing in July.
“On August 3, they broke into a Shell gas station and stole $4,000 of scratcher tickets and $200 in cigarettes,” Corvolth stated, then “six days later in Berkeley they stole $10,000 worth of cigarettes and $10,000 in cash from the business and fled in a stolen car.”
In addition to the specifics of the crime for which Barbazo was at the hearing now, Corvolth reiterated the fact that Barbazo already has three pending felonies at the moment and that this case is her fourth.
Corvolth also stated that Barbazo has several out-of-state arrests and is on three different probations, noting, “I don’t have any felony convictions on her record but she is on three different probations in southern California: one for identity theft, one for petty theft, and another I believe is a drug conviction, so I would disagree with Mr. Cole.”
Upon submission of both sides, Judge Dickinson set Barboza’s bail to remain at $320,000, and Corvolth asked that Barboza be remanded on one of her pending cases, also for burglary, with bail set at $20,000.
Cole asked for the amount to be reduced on the basis that “number one she really has no money and number two she’s looking at $300,000 already.”
Barboza left the plea hearing with her total bail being reduced to $315,000 for all four of her cases.
For Barboza’s other three cases, Cole went on to enter pleas of not guilty with consent.
Preliminary hearings for all of Barboza’s matters are scheduled for Sept. 15.
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