DOVE CREEK - Charged with second-degree murder, a local man had a $1 million lowered to $200,000 this week.
After a 45-minute hearing on Tuesday, May 26, District Court Judge Todd Plewe granted a defense request to lower bond for William C. Blackburn, Jr., 42, of Dove Creek. Blackburn is accused of choking his girlfriend on Jan. 7 and has been charged with second-degree murder as an act of domestic violence.
Deputy District Attorney Traci Leibowitz unsuccessfully argued to maintain the $1 million bond, saying Blackburn posed a public safety risk to the rural Dolores County town of 721 residents.
"A reduction would not be appropriate," Leibowitz said.
Leibowitz also claimed that Blackburn was a flight risk, pointing out that the defendant failed to appear for proceedings involving DUI charges in 2003 and 2008.
Public defender Justin Bogan argued that Blackburn had an Eighth Amendment right to receive a more reasonable bond amount because he has no prior convictions.
"There's an innocent man before your honor that is entitled to bond," Bogan argued.
Bogan said prosecutors failed to provide evidence that his client posed a risk to the community or was flight risk. He added that Blackburn knew he was the prime suspect in the case after a police interrogation in January, yet he remained in his hometown until his arrest in April.
"He's not going anywhere," Bogan said as he tapped Blackburn's shoulder. "He wants to clear his name of these charges."
When lowering bond, Plewe ruled that a $1 million bond was inappropriate, and that it was the same as holding a suspect without bond. The lower bond included stipulations that the defendant be monitored by a GPS ankle monitor, refrain from any alcohol and remain within the state.
Bogan said it was unlikely that his client would be able to post the lowered $200,000 bond.
Shackled and wearing khaki inmate clothing, Blackburn didn't address the court at Tuesday's bond hearing. He faces up to 48 years in prison if convicted.
Blackburn's next court appearance is a preliminary hearing at 1:30 p.m. on June 30.
After a nearly four-month probe by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Blackburn was charged with the death of girlfriend Cindy Johnson on April 23. Johnson, 62, was found dead inside the couple's Dove Creek home on Jan. 8.
According to court records, Dolores County Sheriff Jerry Martin initially thought Johnson victim died of a drug overdose. Six days later, an autopsy indicated that she died of strangulation between 9 p.m. and midnight on Jan. 7.
Blackburn reportedly told authorities that he last saw his girlfriend alive when he left for work the following morning. He has denied any wrongdoing. His DNA was found under Johnson's fingernails.
According to Martin, the alleged murder is the first in Dove Creek in more than three decades. He said the last murder, which involved the shooting death of a man named Corky Conley, occurred before he entered law enforcement.
tbaker@cortezjournal.com