Bond Reduction for Robert Springsteen Denied

Travis Co. District Judge Mike Lynch today denied a bid to allow yogurt shop murder defendant Robert Springsteen to be released from jail pending retrial, concluding that the "complex area" of DNA science now involved in the 18-year-old murder case -- upon which Springsteen's bid to be released was sought -- warranted a "much more lengthy, extensive, and rigorous opportunity for examination and cross-examination of the experts" involved -- the sort of rigorous vetting that would occur at trial.

Springsteen's co-defendant, Michael Scott, will be retried in July, and that trial is the "number one priority" for the court right now, Lynch wrote in a two-page order. Allowing any "full-blown hearing" regarding DNA in the case would not only have "consumed a great deal or time and resources," but also "could hamper" a fair trial. "Based on the admittedly incomplete review" of the science "done for this hearing, the Court is not prepared to find that the defendant's significant burden" of showing he should be released "has been met," Lynch wrote. The judge also noted that nothing in his decision to deny a bond reduction for Springsteen is "meant to convey any comprehensive and final opinion by the Court on the quality or validity of any DNA testing performed or any expert opinions thereon."

More on the DNA evidence and Springsteen's bid to be released on bond is here.