Bail Project doesn't have duty to control behavior of people after it posts bond, appeals court says
A group that bailed out criminal defendants isn’t liable for posting bond for a man who was later accused of crashing a stolen car into a vehicle driven by a teenage girl, causing her death, the Kentucky Court of Appeals has ruled. (Image from Shutterstock)
A group that bailed out criminal defendants isn’t liable for posting bond for a man who was later accused of crashing a stolen car into a vehicle driven by a teenage girl, causing her death, the Kentucky Court of Appeals has ruled.
The Bail Project, a nonprofit organization, isn’t liable because it didn’t have a duty to control the behavior of the released criminal defendant, the appeals court ruled April 19.
The Volokh Conspiracy noted the unpublished 2-1 decision.
The defendant, Michael DeWitt, had been jailed on charges of receiving stolen property, public intoxication, criminal trespass, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer. The Bail Project posted DeWitt’s bond in February 2021.
Five days later, DeWitt was allegedly under the influence of amphetamines and benzodiazepines when his stolen car crossed the center line and crashed head-on into a vehicle driven by 17-year-old Madelynn Troutt, her parents had alleged.
The Louisville, Kentucky, teenager, a cheerleader who planned to study nursing, died about 45 minutes later, according to WDRB and the decision.
The parents, Jeremy and Marcie Lynn Troutt, sued the Bail Project and three of its employees. The Troutts alleged that DeWitt had a criminal history dating back to 2012, and the Bail Project was negligent in posting his bond.
A Kentucky circuit court granted summary judgment to the Bail Project, holding that the group did not have a special relationship with DeWitt and did not undertake a duty to control DeWitt’s actions after his release from jail. The appeals court affirmed in an opinion by Judge Pamela R. Goodwine.
“There are no facts under which TBP could have owed a duty to the Troutts,” the appeals court said. “If we accepted the Troutts’ argument, then any individual, often a family member, who paid bail on behalf of a criminal defendant would be civilly liable to victims of crimes committed while the defendant was out of custody on bond.”
Judge Annette Karem argued in a dissent that the Bail Project assumed an obligation for DeWitt to return to court and follow court orders. As a result, Karem said, the Bail Project had a special relationship with the defendant, and it owed a duty to Madelynn Troutt.
