By: Patrick Aguilar, Carmen Miranda, and Angana Gurung
SAN FRANCISCO — On July 23, 2025, in San Francisco County Superior Court, Judge Teresa M. Caffese denied bail to the accused, who remains in custody. This decision was made due to the number of bench warrants the accused has had in the past.
The accused has medical issues that caused him to be absent from multiple court hearings. Judge Caffese took these considerations into account but ultimately decided that the bench warrants were too great a factor.
The accused was present in court because of a bench warrant that was issued for his return. He has a felony arson case in which he is accused of being involved.
The reasoning for his recent absence was due to injured wrists from an accident, explained conflict counselor Garry Preneta. Due to his lack of presence in court, a bench warrant was issued.
Conflict counselor Preneta presented bandages to the court that the accused still had from his medical visit.
The accused, who is unhoused, was walking with a friend who is also unhoused. They were seen on video walking toward a building when the friend reached into the accused’s backpack and took out a gas-powered torch.
Conflict counselor Preneta reminded the court that the accused was out of frame when the friend set the building on fire.
After Judge Caffese heard about the medical issues the accused had, she still decided to keep him in custody because of the many bench warrants that had been issued for his return.
The accused will appear again in court for a pretrial conference on Aug. 12, 2025, and on Sept. 5, 2025, for a jury trial.
