Judge who reduced murder suspect bail reverses course after criticism from DPD Chief, associations

A Dallas County judge facing criticism after reducing bail for a murder suspect reversed course late Monday and raised bail in the case after news of the reduction circulated. Judge Chika Anyiam last week decreased Julio Guerrero’s bail by 75% — from $2 million to $510,000 — after his defense argued that Guerrero could not afford the bail, according to court records. The reduction would’ve allowed Guerrero to post $51,000 cash bond for his release from the Dallas County jail. But late Monday, Anyiam raised bail on the murder charge to $600,000 after “further review and reassessment of the case,” court records show. The reversal brought Guerrero’s bail total to $1.1 million.

Guerrero was jailed in June on charges of murder and multiple counts of aggravated assault in connection with the fatal May 2 shooting of 35-year-old Francisco Villanueva Rodriguez in Far East Dallas as well as a shooting at an east Oak Cliff gas station the following week that wounded a 3-year-old girl. Dallas police said he also shot at officers who tried to take him into custody on June 2 during an eight-hour standoff in east Oak Cliff. He surrendered to police after the standoff, and was booked into the Dallas County jail, where he remained Tuesday morning, according to jail records. Anyiam and Guerrero’s attorney, Tom Cox, could not immediately be reached Tuesday for comment. Cox has given Anyiam $5,000 in campaign contributions since 2015, according to campaign finance reports. It is common and legal for attorneys to make such contributions. And, in most circumstances, it’s also ethical. But the judge’s initial move to lower Guerrero’s bail prompted sharp criticism from Gov. Greg Abbott, García, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, and two Dallas police associations, among others. Abbott called the move “outrageous” in a Tuesday tweet, adding that “this must be stopped” and officials are working on “another law next session to keep communities safe from these criminals.”