A nationwide push continues to oust a California judge who allowed a gunman who killed a sheriff’s deputy walk free continues.
It’s been two weeks since sheriff deputy, Isaiah Cordero was gunned down by a gang member during a traffic stop near Los Angeles.
Superior Court Judge Cara D. Hutson had more than one chance to put William McKay behind bars, but repeatedly freed him, letting him walk the streets ready to commit his next crime.
Last year, McKay was taken into custody for assaulting a woman and holding her hostage, and then tying her up and keeping her at his home for several days.
Hutson reduced his bail instead of putting him directly in jail. Additionally, she dismissed multiple charges against McKay that would have resulted in a short prison term.
One of the charges she dismissed was the most serious charge of his- kidnapping. Hutson argued that the victim was not moved a substantial enough distance. However, state law does not specify the distance required to file such a charge.
Still, McKay walks free even after posting bail and missing his court day.
McKay went on to eventually shoot and kill Cordero on December 29— a tragic event that could have been avoided had the progressive judge done her job and put the 44-year-old in prison the first time he broke the law.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said that he is frustrated and devastated by the judge’s decision to let a repeat offender out, adding that he is determined to remove her from her position.
“This isn’t isolated for her. This guy ... is an obvious career criminal, multiple violent convictions, and she lets him go and he kills a cop,” Bianco told the Washington Examiner. “If she is going to do something like that, there are many, many more [incidents from Hutson], we just haven’t heard about it.
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The National Police Association has joined Bianco in circulating a nationwide petition to oust Hutson.
So far, the group has received over 4,000 signatures in just a matter of days.
“You see this young deputy in his 30s, this is an additional punch in the gut that this crime, this murder, was 100% preventable,” Sgt. Betsy Smith, a spokeswoman for the National Police Association said. “You can’t say that about a lot of crimes. Cara Hutson needs to step down. She should not have the bench. She is a danger not only to Southern California but to the country. Judges like her are endangering people in an already violent society where we are thousands of police officers short [staffed].”
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