A Colorado man who was released on $250 bail following an alleged assault on a police officer allegedly killed his mother weeks later, reigniting debate over bail practices and criminal justice reforms nationwide.
“It blows my mind, Chris,” Jennifer King, the suspect’s half-sister, told 9NEWS. “I am livid. I am very, very mad.”
Why It Matters
Michael’s case highlights growing concerns over bail policies that allow potentially violent offenders back into communities with minimal financial conditions. In Larimer County, where the incident occurred, the average bail for a class four felony in 2024 was $14,043, which is below the statewide average of $27,673, according to 9News. Michael’s $250 bond ranked in the bottom 1.4 percent of similar cases statewide that year.
The tragedy comes amid a national rethinking of criminal justice reform policies. Recent years saw efforts to reduce reliance on cash bail and promote alternatives to incarceration. However, public concerns over crime have spurred a shift back toward stricter enforcement in many jurisdictions.
What To Know
Michael Fuller was arrested by the Loveland Police Department in October 2024 after he allegedly assaulted an officer during a disturbance at a local park.
Michael allegedly had a violent encounter with officers after he was accused of throwing rocks at a woman, 9News reported. Body camera footage obtained by the outlet showed Fuller putting an officer in a headlock.
He faced several charges, including felony assault on a police officer. Larimer County Magistrate Jill Sage ultimately rejected a personal recognizance bond and instead set a $250 cash bond, which Michael posted within days.
“If my brother had any more than a $250 bond, he would have still been in jail and not able to murder my mother,” King told 9News.
The district attorney’s office told 9News that the bond recommendation was based on a matrix-driven assessment system and acknowledged flaws in the current process.
Nationally, lawmakers in several states have moved toward stricter criminal penalties. Georgia added 30 new offenses to its list of crimes requiring cash bail, and voters in California passed a ballot initiative rolling back parts of the state’s 2014 sentencing reform law.
What People Are Saying
Larimer County District Attorney Gordon McLaughlin in a statement to 9News: “We have long recognized a problem in the way Larimer County sets bonds in serious cases, a system where bond recommendations are based almost entirely on an assessment score matrix – essentially some surface level questions and an equation – and a judicial order over which we have no control.”
Dan Schnur, a political communications expert at USC, told the Los Angeles Times: “The culture in both California and across the country has become more concerned about violent crime and retail theft.”
What Happens Next
Fuller is due back in court on May 29, according to court records reviewed by Newsweek.
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