Chief John Drake is expressing serious concern after a man who was released on $3,000 bond Tuesday related to charges of false imprisonment and assault was rearrested this morning for the attempted kidnapping of a 15-year-old Martin Luther King Jr. Magnet School student.
The female student saw a man, subsequently identified as Jamien Taylor, 26, watching and then following her just after she got off a school bus on 17th Avenue North. She began running, with Taylor in pursuit, until she made it safely into the school building where she notified adults.
Officers assigned to the School Rapid Response Team arrived in the area quickly and apprehended Taylor, who had gotten onto a WeGo bus at 17th Avenue North and Charlotte Avenue. Officers stopped the bus and took him into custody without incident. Taylor admitted to running after the student. He is charged with attempted kidnapping and assault. His bond is now set at $75,000, which will require a source hearing before a judge before he could be considered for release.
Taylor was charged April 17 with false imprisonment and assault for allegedly following a woman into an elevator near Public Square Park and making unwanted sexual advances earlier in the month. The Community Bail Fund posted his $3,000 bond on Tuesday of this week and he was released.
“The safety of our community should be a real consideration in the setting of bonds and pre-trial release conditions,” Chief Drake said. “That should involve weighing the nature of offenses and the specific details alleged in arrest warrant affidavits. It’s no secret that our officers are dealing with the same people time and again.”
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Jamien Taylor, 26