CA- Bail For Phillip Garrido Set At $30 Million

9-15-2009 California:

PLACERVILLE, Calif. --
Bail for Phillip Garrido, a sex offender accused of abducting and raping Jaycee Lee Dugard, was set Monday at $30 million.

But because of a parole hold, he is not eligible for release, El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson said.

Garrido and his wife, Nancy Garrido, face charges in the 1991 Meyers kidnapping of Dugard, who was found safe last month in the Bay Area.

Phillip Garrido allegedly fathered two children with Dugard, and apparently forced her to live in his Antioch back yard for many years, police said.

A mental evaluation has been requested for both of the Garridos.

Phillip and Nancy Garrido were brought into a Placerville courtroom together on Monday morning for a brief bail hearing. She appeared to be out of breath.

Phillip Garrido appeared in court with a bandage on his nose and a newly grown beard.

Nancy Garrido is being held without bail. Both are due back in court for an Oct. 29 hearing.

Pierson said it is difficult to tell when a trial will begin.

"This is a pretty unusual case," Pierson added. "I don't think anybody has ever handled a case quite like this one."

Outside court, Pierson told a throng of media from around the world that investigators were continuing to pursue other leads in the case.

"As of today, there are no additional charges ... That's not to say there won't be," he said.

He said Dugard and her children were doing exceptionally well under the circumstances after being reunited with Dugard's mother shortly after the Garridos were arrested Aug. 27.

"Basic human decency mandates honoring the family's request for privacy," he said.

He declined to comment on rumors that Dugard, now 29, has agreed to appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show and praised the state parole agent who brought the Garridos into custody.

The agent, whom Pierson identified as Eddie Santos, questioned Phillip Garrido after being notified by University of California, Berkeley police employees that the convicted sex offender had arrived on campus with two children while attempting to distribute religious pamphlets.

"This parole agent successfully broke through the elaborate, well-planned cover story that was 18 years in the making," Pierson said. "We all owe him a debt of gratitude."

Gordon Hinkle, a spokesman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, would not confirm that Santos was the parole agent. But he said Garrido's most recent parole officer had been assigned to the case only since December.

He said the department was reviewing its handling of Garrido's parole but would not release any details because it did not want to interfere with the ongoing criminal case.

Before Monday's hearing, Deputy District Attorney Trish Kelliher filed a declaration seeking higher bail for both suspects, citing the serious nature of the crimes and saying they should be considered flight risks.

She also said in her court filing that a stun gun was used to subdue the victim when she was kidnapped from a school bus stop in 1991.

Both defendants are due back in court for an Oct. 29 hearing. The district attorney's office said it could take a year to 18 months to bring the case to trial. ..Source.. by KCRA.com