Law And Order

Judge frees armed robbery suspect
Prosecutors 'strenuously' object to release
Over the vehement protests of prosecutors, a Riverside County judge on Friday freed a Coachella Valley man who earlier had pleaded guilty to five counts of armed robbery involving drugs stolen from five pharmacies.

Terry Lamont Wells, 44, withdrew his guilty pleas last week. He'd been jailed in lieu of $250,000 bond since his arrest in November.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge David Downing released Wells pending trial with no bond posted on the condition that Wells wear an ankle monitor preventing him from leaving the Coachella Valley, that he not own or possess a gun and that he not enter any pharmacies.

"I am not known to yell or pound, but in (Friday's) hearing to say that I strenuously objected does not do justice to what went on," Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Antonio Fimbres said.

"We argued that for the interest of public safety that Mr. Wells should not be released. He is clearly a danger to others in the community, because of his addiction to prescription drugs, his multiple offenses committing this particular crime."

Attempts to reach Wells for comment were unsuccessful. His attorney, public defender David Prendergast, did not return a telephone message Friday afternoon.

Wells suffers from multiple sclerosis and believes he is dying, Fimbres said. Wells was accused of robbing five different Walgreens or Rite-Aid pharmacies in the Bermuda Dunes and Indio areas in October and November.

"Each time, he would go to the pharmacy counter and demand fentanyl patches, a narcotic painkiller he was addicted to," Fimbres said.

"If the pharmacist didn't participate in giving those to him, he would display a gun and threaten them with it," Fimbres said.

After the third such incident, Wells' description and method of theft were relayed to valley pharmacies.

Wells on Nov. 25 was allegedly spotted in the act of robbing a pharmacist at a Bermuda Dunes Walgreens store when another pharmacist who was not serving him called police.

Wells was arrested as he left the store.

He was jailed in Indio in lieu of $250,000 bond and charged with five counts of robbery by force or fear, with a gun enhancement.

Prosecutor may appeal

On Feb. 6, Wells pleaded guilty to the counts in exchange for receiving the minimum sentence of 12 years in prison, court records show.

Downing stated from the bench his desire to give probation to Wells, who had no prior criminal record, Fimbres said.

"The gun enhancement requires a sentence of state prison - there's no striking that," Fimbres said.

Downing gave Wells the opportunity to withdraw his guilty plea, which he did last week, prompting Friday's bail hearing.

Attempts to reach Downing were responded to by his courtroom assistant, Susie Pimentel.

"He would decline to make any comment, nor could he make any comment in an ongoing case," she said.

Fimbres called Downing's decision to release Wells "highly unusual," particularly because Wells is accused of multiple violent crimes involving a gun, and would be sentenced to prison if convicted.

"I don't want to put words in (Downing's) mouth, but his interpretation of the case was from the defendant's perspective rather than the community's perspective, at least in my opinion," Fimbres said.

Wells' medical condition makes him even more potentially threatening, Fimbres said.

"Any prison sentence to him, at least in his mind, is a death sentence," he said.

"That gives Mr. Wells little incentive to return to court. If he were to go into a pharmacy, we're all at a heightened level of risk then, because he has every incentive to fight.

"The result for him is prison," Fimbres said.

A trial readiness date in Wells' case is set for Aug. 1.

Cool. Three months for us to see if a drug addict can stay clean, avoid pharmacies and stay away from firearms.

Prosecutors are reviewing transcripts of Downing's decision Friday and from earlier proceedings related to Wells to determine if they have a compelling case of abuse of judicial discretion to appeal to the 4th District state Court of Appeal in Riverside, Fimbres said.

"I think the circumstances of what Mr. Wells faces, the desperation due to his medical condition, makes it a very dangerous situation for everyone - particularly people who work in pharmacies," Fimbres said.

Via The Desert Sun.