Amid protests by the district attorney, three people charged in the plot to kill local businessman Mike Hale will be allowed to ask for their bonds to be reduced Thursday for their roles in the attack outside the VFW.
“I have to object,” said District Attorney General Lisa Zavogiannis after General Sessions Judge Bill Locke set the bond hearing for this Thursday.
Her objection was to the short notice given for the bond hearing for suspects, Jack Redmon, 44, Brooke Hale, 33, and Tracy Bouldin, 45. They are all charged with attempted homicide in the daylight attack of Hale in the parking lot of the VFW on the afternoon of Aug. 9.
Hale suffered two stab wounds to the chest and midsection, allegedly at the hands of Redmon. The victim has recently been released from the hospital after undergoing surgery.
“My client has been held for six days without proof she was involved,” said Larry Bryant, who is representing Brooke Hale. She is the estranged wife of the victim who arrived on Redmon’s motorcycle and reportedly helped chase Hale during the attack and hit him with a motorcycle helmet.
Bryant argued his client’s bond, set at $500,000, is excessive given the lack of evidence against her. Bouldin, who was given the public defender’s office for representation, is also under $500,000 bond. Redmon, who is alleged to be the one who stabbed Hale, is under $1 million bond.
Locke agreed with the defense, noting that putting off a bail hearing until their preliminary hearings Sept. 8 would be an undue delay. Therefore, he set the bond hearing for 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
While Bryant said evidence is thin against his client, arrest warrants state otherwise. According to the arrest warrants, it was Brooke Hale who put Redmon and her estranged husband on a collision course the day of the stabbing when she initiated a call between them.
“During the conversation, Redmon threatened physical harm on the person of Mr. Hale and stated his intentions that he was ‘coming for him today,’” the warrant claims.
Warrants also claim Bouldin sent a text message to Redmon that he was “getting Mike Hale today” prior to the two meeting at the VFW to attack the victim.
“They attacked Michael Hale as he stood outside the building in the parking lot,” said sheriff’s investigator Jason Rowland in his attempted homicide warrants against the three. “During the attack, Jack Redmon stabbed Michael Hale in the chest with a knife and abdomen and Brooke Hale struck him in the head with a motorcycle helmet.”
The warrant further says Bouldin was wielding a pipe at the time of the attack and helped chase the wounded victim through the parking lot. Hale sought refuge inside the VFW as his three attackers were turned away at the door by an employee there.