By G.T. Houts
San Bernardino, CA – San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Annemarie G. Pace has denied a defense motion to reduce the $1.75 million bail of Crestline murder suspect Steve Michael Baumgartner.
Judge Pace met off the record with counsel at the bench August 5 and then announced her decision: “The court finds no unusual circumstances for reduction in bail.”
Steve Michael Baumgartner (Facebook Photo)
A preliminary hearing set for Thursday, August 7, was vacated. A pre-preliminary hearing was then set for 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 26, in Department S-17.
Baumgartner remains in custody at the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga.
THE CASE
Baumgartner, a former Riverside County Deputy Sheriff, is accused of the June 30 shooting death of 38-year-old Michael Paul Clark in the 23000 block of Wildwood Lane in Crestline.
Baumgartner reportedly shot Clark –his next door neighbor — in the face with a .357 Magnum after the two men got in an argument outside Clark’s home. (113)