No Bond For Alleged Stabber Of FIU Player
MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) - The man accused of stabbing Florida International University football player Kendall Berry to death will remain in jail while he awaits trial, a Miami-Dade judge ruled Tuesday morning.
Quentin Wyche was asking to be released from jail on bond. Wyche, 22, allegedly stabbed Berry to death on FIU's main campus in March 2010 with a pair of scissors.
Judge Milton Hirsch said that Wyche did not have enough ties to the community to be released from jail without being considered a flight risk.
Defense attorneys tried to argue that the judge was inexperienced and had only recently been appointed to the bench.
Judge Hirsch replied that if he was so wrong, the Third District Court of Appeals would correct him and he said, "They have better judges there."
Defense attorney David Peckins said Wyche should have been let out on bond.
"He deserves to be out pending trial," Peckins said.'We're going to get the case ready for trial as quickly as possible and i expect him to be found not guilty."
Peckins argued that Wyche acted in self defense after friends of Berry attacked him outside the recreation center. The fight allegedly began because Wyche allegedly stuffed a cookie in Berry's girlfriend's face.
The family of Kendall Berry was at the hearing Tuesday morning and breathed a sigh of relief after Judge Hirsch's decision.
"We pray we're able to stay strong and humble and let justice be done," said Kendall Berry's father Derrick Spillman.
"We are very happy with the judge's decision," Kendall's mother, Melisscia Spillman said. "Just from my opinion, we haven't really seen a change. I think there's no remorse being shown. There's nothing to show what caused you to go to this magnitude of murder."
It will be a tough trial for prosecutors as they do not have strong evidence against Wyche, CBS4's Evan Bacon reported.
