After Alleged Attacker Freed, Candidate Says System Is 'Broken'

Fund co-founded by BLM put up $100K bail after shooting at Craig Greenberg's office
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 18, 2022 8:30 AM CST
Candidate 'Traumatized' After Alleged Attacker Given Bail
This photo provided by Louisville Metro Department of Corrections shows Quintez Brown.   (Louisville Metro Department of Corrections via AP)

A Democratic candidate for mayor of Louisville says the fact that the man charged with trying to kill him on Monday was able to walk out of jail on Wednesday shows that "our criminal justice system is clearly broken." Social activist Quintez Brown, 21, was released Wednesday after a group co-founded by Black Lives Matter put up $100,000 bail, the BBC reports. "Sadly, like others who suffer from a broken system, my team and family have been traumatized again by the news," Greenberg said in a statement Thursday. Police say Brown opened fire with a handgun Monday in Greenberg's campaign office. Nobody was injured, but Greenberg's clothing was grazed by a bullet. Brown faces charges including attempted murder.

Brown's release was strongly criticized by politicians from both parties. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who owns a home in Louisville, called it "jaw-dropping" that Brown was released while his mental state was still being investigated, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports. "A left-wing bail fund partnered with BLM Louisville to bail him out," McConnell said on the Senate floor Thursday, per the Washington Post. "Less than 48 hours after this activist tried to literally murder a politician, the radical left bailed their comrade out of jail." Adam Edelen, a close friend of Greenberg's and a former Democratic candidate for Kentucky governor, tweeted that there is "simply no defense for a would-be assassin to be released on bail, 60 hours after firing on his intended target."

Attorney Rob Eggert said Tuesday that Brown, a former Courier-Journal intern who was running for a council seat, has "serious mental health issues" and hadn't slept for days or weeks before the shooting. He denied that the attack on Greenberg, who is Jewish, was a hate crime. The Courier-Journal reports that Black Lives Matter Louisville co-founder Chantelle Helm, who is involved with the Louisville Community Bail Fund, says the group is "concerned for his mental health" and didn't believe he would get the necessary help in jail. She says the fund often helps people awaiting trial find mental health counseling. Last month, Republican state lawmakers introduced a bill to ban "charitable bail organizations" like the Louisville fund. (More Kentucky stories.)

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