Gregg File
Gregg File
Gregg File
COMES NOW the Defendant, Carly Madison Gregg, by and through her
counsel of record, and files this her Motion to Reduce Bond (“Motion”) pursuant to
Rule 8 of the Mississippi Rules of Criminal Procedure, and in support thereof would
respectfully show unto this Honorable Court the following facts and matters, to-wit:
1.
Carly is currently 15 years old. Her bond is currently set at One Million
2.
Carly was arrested and taken into custody on Tuesday, March 19th, 2024,
after she flagged down a patrol car and peacefully turned herself over to law
enforcement.
3.
Carly has no prior criminal record whatsoever, nor does she have a history
of violence.
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4.
To the contrary, Carly was an honor roll student and student of the year at
5.
6.
7.
Carly does not possess the financial means or resources to raise the funds
required to pay her current bond. Carly’s current bond is excessively high and set
at an unreasonable amount. (See Lee v. Lawson, 375 So. 2d 1019, 1024 (Miss.
1979)).
8.
The State charged Carly as an adult. Therefore, Carly has been detained in
solitary confinement and not allowed visitors (with the sole exception of her
attorneys), or the ability to speak with anyone for twenty-three (23) hours a day.
Carly has been isolated under these conditions for nearly two months as of the
date of the filing of this Motion. This extreme confinement and isolation is
9.
Carly has been detained in solitary confinement for nearly two months
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10.
Dr. James O’Brien has been retained to conduct a psych evaluation and
testing on Carly, but this evaluation and testing cannot be done while Carly is in
jail.
11.
Carly has been charged as an adult, but adults charged with the same crime
as Carly are not being held in the same form of extreme confinement.
12.
Children who are the same age as Carly and in the same grade as Carly
and who attend the same school as Carly have been charged with the same crime
as Carly but have received much lower bonds. Please see attached as Exhibit “A”
examples of much lower bond set for children who face the same charges in the
tri-county area.
13.
Both the living victim and the family members of the deceased victim support
14.
fleeing the jurisdiction, and she has already demonstrated her willingness to turn
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15.
Carly has lived in Rankin County for years. Her family members, school, and
16.
would also allow Carly access to necessary mental health care and enable her to
continue attending school online until her indictment and/or trial while releasing
17.
Carly cannot possibly pay her initial bond amount. Bond is not meant to force
a defendant to rot in jail until his or her case can be heard. Refusing to reduce
Carly’s bond effectively denies her the right to a bond and leaves her in pre-trial
detention even though she is not a flight risk or a risk to the public, which violates
the 8th Amendment of the United States Constitution. (18 U.S.C. § 3142 (2022),
also see U.S. v. Szott, 768 F.2d 159 (7th Cir. 1985)).
18.
Carly has the benefit of being deemed innocent until proven guilty.
respectfully requests that this Court will reduce her initial bond to a reasonable
amount and to give Carly an unsecured bond based on her circumstances. Carly
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requests such other relief, either general or specific, to which she may show herself
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
above-referenced matter, do hereby certify that on this the 10th day of May, 2024, a true
and correct copy of the foregoing Motion to Reduce Bond was served on the following:
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