Murder suspect Earl Guillemet is set to go to trial on June 30—but before that, the defense and the Commonwealth will meet for mediation, and a bond motion was denied in Christian Circuit Court Wednesday morning.
Guillemet—who is charged in the May 2023 shooting death of Dolores Hernandez—is represented by defense attorney Ramon McGee, who filed a motion and then argued for a bond reduction in his behalf Wednesday. He contends that Guillemet has been in jail since his arrest with no bond modification, and since Guillemet is presumed innocent until proven guilty, he should have some attempt at having a bond he can feasibly pay.
McGee cited his clients struggle with mental health and how the family would be available to assist him with his court responsibilities, but the current bond of $500,000 was not obtainable for them. Commonwealth’s Attorney Maureen Leamy argued the bond is appropriate for the charges, and trial is only a few weeks away.
Ultimately, Judge John Atkins agreed with the Commonwealth, saying he’s hopeful a resolution can be worked out in mediation and so he denied the request for bond modification.
Judge Atkins also informed the parties that he has been double-booked between this case and a medical malpractice case—in the event the other trial moves forward, he will transfer this case to be presided over by Judge Andrew Self.
Witnesses and security camera footage from the area identified a silver Chevy truck as leaving the scene after the shooting and a Black male with gray facial hair was seen walking towards the victim’s residence just moments before the shots fired call.
Police would also eventually recover the gun Guillemet allegedly used to kill Hernandez and he was arrested on charges of murder, tampering with evidence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.