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Glenn Pettway, wanted in the shooting death of a Bridgeport woman Saturday morning, is believed to be operating a blue 2002 Ford Mustang. Police said he should be considered armed and dangerous.
The tragic death of Marisol Dumeng — allegedly killed by a boyfriend free on bond for murder and domestic violence charges — is casting a spotlight on a rarely used state law that enables prosecutors to revoke bail.
But State’s Attorney Joseph Corradino, who oversees the Fairfield County Judicial District, said that while the Dumeng example seems tailor made for bail revocation, the case is more complicated than it appears.
Corradino said on three occasions the victim recanted domestic abuse allegations against her boyfriend, which made it impossible to revoke the murder bond and send him back to jail.
“We were never going to have evidence to go in and revoke the (murder) bond,” Corradino said.
“Bond motions require proof by clear and convincing evidence that establishes the claim,” Corradino added. “On the second court appearance, she (Dumeng) is already recanting. We didn’t have any external collaboration. That’s the problem.”
Under state law, bail or bond can be revoked for defendants facing 10 or more years in jail — which includes anyone charged with murder — if prosecutors can show they violated terms of the bond or the defendant is a danger to the community.
Mike Lawlor, a criminal justice professor at the University of New Haven, said the law is rarely invoked.
“It’s possible the statute has never been used,” Lawlor said. “Prosecutors will say it’s not as easy as you think, that we have to put on a case and prove he’s a danger.”
On May 28, 30-year-old Dumeng was found dead at her Bridgeport home. Glenn Pettway, her boyfriend, was charged with Dumeng’s murder and a few days later killed himself during a June 2 standoff with Tennessee police.
At the time of Dumeng’s alleged murder, Pettway was free on a $1 million bond for an unrelated murder charge in 2018.
In January, Pettway was charged with two counts of threatening and harassment after Dumeng complained that he threatened to kill her. Pettway was later charged with larceny for allegedly stealing a doorbell camera from her home and breach of peace, Corradino said. He posted new bonds on those charges.
Meghan Scanlon, president and CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said domestic violence is a far greater problem and more complex than most understand.
“This is such a more prevalent issue that people realize and it’s very much a public health crisis,” Scanlon said. “We have a hot line that you can call anytime. You don’t have to access the resources but I don’t want anyone to feel like they are alone because they are not.”
“Smelled a rat”
Corradino said prosecutors had their suspicions about Dumeng’s attempts to recant her domestic violence allegations against Pettway.
“I read the files and I see the recantation,” Corradino said. “I said we will keep him on the domestic violence docket and keep the protective orders in place so we can keep an eye on him.”
During a conversation with Bridgeport police over a disputed sale of a car to Pettway — just 12 hours before Dumeng was killed — Corradino said she admitted being forced by her boyfriend to recant the domestic abuse allegations.
“She recants and then admits she is forced to recant,” Corradino said. “It’s 12 hours before she is killed. There is no time for anyone to respond to that. There is no mechanism to get that information to us.”
Yvette Velez, Dumeng’s sister, said she didn’t know that her sister recanted any of the domestic violence allegations.
“I was not aware of any of that,” Velez said, who declined further comment due to grief over her sister’s recent funeral.
Velez previously told Hearst Connecticut Media that her younger sister was “asking for help” before her death and wanted police to protect her from Pettway.
“She told the police, ‘What are you guys waiting for, for him to come, shoot and kill me?’” Velez said. “And then hours later, that’s exactly what he did.”
Corradino stressed that while prosecutors didn’t try to revoke Pettway’s bail, they wanted to continue the domestic abuse cases despite Dumeng’s recantations.
“We smelled a rat, so we were not going to let go of the domestic violence cases,” Corradino said.
Scanlon said the dynamic of domestic violence is complicated and victims often fluctuate between standing by allegations and recanting them. She said they also don’t always tell family members the whole story.
“It’s very complicated and lives are forever intertwined,” Scanlon said.
“That person might be the bread winner,” she continued. “On some level there is a caring feeling for the offender. It’s not necessarily healthy. But it’s a learned behavior over time; they witness it in other parts of their life.”
Seldom used law
Lawlor said the bail revocation law was passed in response to concerns over whether the state Constitution, which establishes that all defendants have a right to post bail, also stipulated that bail could not be revoked.
“Under the state Constitution, everyone is entitled to bail,” Lawlor said.
The solution was a 1990s law that allowed revocation of bail for defendants facing 10 years or more in jail, Lawlor said.
Prosecutors must file a motion for a hearing and prove to a judge that the defendant violated bail conditions or is a danger to the community or a member of the community.
In 2014, New Jersey confronted a similar question about its state Constitution and voters ultimately agreed to amend the document so courts can deny bail for certain offenses and revoke it for others, Lawlor said.
“One remedy is to change the state Constitution like New Jersey,” Lawlor said.
Corradino said the Connecticut revocation law is rarely used, partly because most defendants are unable to post bond, and also because it’s difficult to prevail during a bail revocation hearing.
“I’ve been in this office 24 years and I remember doing one because we felt the guy was going to abscond,” Corradino said. “Bond is favored because (defendants) are innocent until proven guilty.”
Scanlon said advocates have been pushing lawmakers to enact a “hold” provision that allows the courts to keep an offender in jail for 24 or 48 hours before offering bail — a cooling off period, so to speak.
“It’s not that you want to deny bail but is it worth having a 24 or 48 hour period where you hold on that?” Scanlon said.
bcummings@ctpost.com