CHAMBERS COUNTY, Texas – On Thursday, the First Court of Appeals upheld the $2 million bond for a woman accused of murdering her husband, rejecting her lawyers’ request for a reduction.
Sarah Hartsfield’s attorney filed an appeal in March to have her bond reduced from $2 million to $150,000, claiming the bond amount is “excessive.”
Sarah Hartsfield is currently in the Chambers County Jail.
Hartsfield, who has been married five times, was the only person with her 46-year-old husband Joseph Hartsfield when he became unresponsive at their Beach City home in January 2023. The diabetic was rushed to the hospital where he died a week later, the medical examiner’s office ruled due to complications of toxic effects of insulin.
Hartsfield’s bond has already been reduced three times since she has been in jail. She was arrested in February 2023 after being indicted on a murder charge. At that time, her bond was set at $5 million. A motion to reduce her bond was filed and her bond was dropped to $4.5 million on February 9, 2023. A second motion was filed to reduce her bond again in March 2023 and it was dropped to $4 million. Her bond was eventually reduced again to $2 million in October 2023.
In the written request for the appeal, Hartsfield’s attorney argued her $2 million bond is “clearly excessive” and has resulted in Hartsfield being “effectively denied bail.”
Hartsfield’s attorney argued she has the constitutional right to reasonable bail and that the court that issued Hartsfield’s bond has made it impossible for her to make bail. The attorney argues that although murder is a serious offense, Hartsfield’s bond should not be used to keep her in jail with no hope of making bail.
The First Court of Appeals considered the following in setting Hartsfield’s bail:
1. The bail and any conditions shall be sufficient to give reasonable assurance that the undertaking will be complied with.
2. The power to require bail is not to be so used as to make it an instrument of oppression.
3. The nature of the offense and the circumstances under which it was committed are to be considered.
4. The ability to make bail shall be considered, and proof may be taken on this point.
5. The future safety of a victim of the alleged offense, law enforcement, and the community shall be considered.
6. The criminal history record information for the defendant shall be considered, including any acts of family violence, other pending criminal charges, and any instances in which the defendant failed to appear in court following release on bail.
7. The citizenship status of the defendant shall be considered.
After considering all of the factors above, the First Court of Appeals found that “the trial court weighed the relevant factors and properly exercised its discretion in refusing to further lower Hartsfield’s bond.” They concluded that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in reducing Hartsfield’s bond to $2,000,000.”
Chambers County District Attorney Cheryl Lieck Henry released this statement after the ruling:
“We’ve always been confident in Judge Cain’s decision to impose a high bond given her history of not only violence but transient history.”
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