A bail hearing in City Court today was continued to Aug. 4 for a man accused of having sexual contact with a mentality disabled family member because the suspect declined a bail evaluation interview with Genesee Justice.
Assistant Public Defender Lisa Kroemer explained to Judge Robert Balbick that her client, Eric Watson, declined the interview because he didn't understand the purpose or know anything about Genesee Justice.
Genesee Justice is a county agency that provides supervisory services on behalf of the court as well as assistance to crime victims. One of the tasks of staff at Genesee Justice is complete a bail evaluation, which a judge can use to set an appropriate amount of bail for each defendant. The scoring system is intended to help judges determine the likelihood a defendant will make it to future court appearances.
Rather than set bail today for Watson, without that information, Balbick continued the case to the next available court date.
Watson is in custody and entered the courtroom dress in an orange jail uniform, moving slowing and balancing with a walker. As he approached the bench, Kroemer told him, "take your time, Mr. Watson."
Watson is accused of having sexual contact with a family member who was unable to consent due to mental incapacity to provide consent.
He is charged with second-degree rape, second-degree criminal sexual act, and second-degree incest.
