Duece Martinez waived his right to a preliminary court hearing and was given a cash surety bond during his appearance in the 22nd Judicial District.
At the start of the Monday hearing, attorney Mallory Taub told Judge William Furse that they wished to waive Martinez’s preliminary hearing in exchange for a potential plea deal in his Class 5 felony eluding and driving under restraint case.
After the hearing, District Attorney Christian Hatfield told The Journal that Martinez’s representation was working on a plea deal, but details were still being decided.
Furse set Martinez’s arraignment for 9 a.m. Thursday. Martinez also has two county court cases with Judge JenniLynn Lawrence, as well as cases in Archuleta County.
During the hearing, Taub and Furse also addressed Martinez’s bond, which was set at $10,000 as of the Monday hearing. Taub said that bond amount was too high for Martinez’s family to post.
Martinez, 18, lived most of his life in Pagosa Springs with his grandparents, according to Taub. She said he was “doing well” in Pagosa Springs and was working as a mechanic because he likes working with cars.
Taub said Martinez’s problems started when he and his grandparents moved to Cortez after his grandparents lost their job and home in Pagosa Springs. She also said it might benefit him to return to Pagosa Springs.
Furse acknowledged Taub’s points, while noting that Martinez’s criminal history was “17 pages long.” He also pointed out that Martinez has several adult and juvenile cases, with some involving alcohol, drugs and violations of a protection order, and has previous failed to appear in court.
However, Furse said the bond was too high and granted a cash surety bond, lowering the bond from $10,000 to $5,000.
Furse also said he’d like to see a report with information on available placement options for Martinez. Furse said that while Martinez can go where he wants upon release because he is an adult, he still wishes to see options for Martinez and where the court envisions he go.
On July 7, Martinez was arrested days after being granted a $500 bond for failing to appear in Archuleta County and for violating a court-ordered protection order.
Martinez was found near Hawkins Preserve in a truck with Lillian Uptain. A June court order barred Martinez from having any contact with Uptain.
Martinez was arrested for driving under the influence on June 16, and this arrest came three days after he was arrested in a domestic violence case involving Uptain.
