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NewsWednesday, May 9, 2007 3:20 PM CDT
Love's bond raised to $300,000 on new charges
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BLOOMINGTON — A judge granted a request by prosecutors to set bond at $300,000 for James C. Love, who faces new charges that he molested children after sedating them.

Love, 37, must post $30,000 cash to be released from jail on the two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and two counts of aggravated battery relating to sedation.

On Tuesday, defense attorney Steve Skelton objected to the state’s request for a bond in excess of the amount sought Friday when Love was charged with similar criminal offenses involving a child. Love was released Saturday after posting $10,000.

Terming the new allegations “a cheap ploy” by the state to keep Love incarcerated, Skelton said “it’s pretty obvious they wanted to make bond as oppressive as they could.” Skelton said he will enter pleas of innocent to all charges when Love is arraigned May 18.

The defense asked Love be allowed to post an additional $10,000 on the new charges.

Skelton said he did not believe Love would be able to post the additional bond.

A large group of friends and family members attended the bond hearing.

Assistant State’s Attorney Michelle Brooks told Judge Paul Lawrence that Love “sedated the victims and molested them while they were sleeping in his house.”

She said one victim woke up during the alleged incident.

Two teenage boys interviewed by police this week offered identical versions of the alleged abuse, said Brooks. She said the boys also were interviewed by the Children’s Advocacy Center. The center is staffed by people trained in talking to minors who may have been sexually abused.

“We have three separate cases and interviews continue to be scheduled in these cases,” Brooks told the court.

As a condition of his bond, Love was ordered to have no contact with persons under the age of 17.

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Reader comments on this story - 7 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

re:Re: ??? wrote on May 9, 2007 1:12 PM:

" How does it look fishy? They arrested him, he bailed out. In the meantime they interviewed more people, they came foward, he had to be arrested again. The law isn't perfect; i know that from first hand experience. However, if more children come foward the bondshould continually go up, it only makes sense. "

Re: ??? wrote on May 9, 2007 11:38 AM:

" If it only happened once, then it my be a cheap ploy. But in my opinion it looks like it happens often. They did it on Pelo too. They charge the case and have a judge determine the bond. Then when they are able to bond out, they turn around and charge them with more cases and get them back in jail. It's harder to meet with your lawyer or help defend yourself when you are sitting in the jail. So if you bond out, the prosecutors want to find some other way to get you back into jail. If they would just do all of their work up front in the first place then it would not look as fishy. "

To: I thought Skelton had health issues wrote on May 9, 2007 11:32 AM:

" The Pelo case is in full swing and probably demands a lot of time. If an attorney has a health issue that requires them to cut back 25% or 50% of their hours and they have one client that is taking up 25% of their time, then it makes sense to withdraw from that one case than from 5-10 other cases. And when did he become the F. Lee Bailey of BN? Well that happened over the last 20 year while he has been wiping the floors of the courtrooms with the prosecutors. "

Crybaby wrote on May 9, 2007 7:49 AM:

" Right! We're all innocent. That is, until we're investigated. "

TO: ??? wrote on May 9, 2007 7:32 AM:

" AMEN!! "

I thought Skelton had health issues? wrote on May 9, 2007 3:18 AM:

" That is the story when he dropped Pelo as a client. I guess one can put a price tag on ones health. It seems Rev. Love has a lot of support and perhaps that can generate into a legal defense fund. I do find it laughable that all of a sudden Steve Skelton has become the F.Lee Bailey of B/N. I guess when the money and the publicity is high enough Skeltons health takes a back seat. In all seriousness the young victims in this case were obviously troubled in the begining, I only pray they get much needed counseling and are able to cope with all of this. "

??? wrote on May 8, 2007 5:18 PM:

" This still seems about short of an appropriate amount. Bond should be denied, and wouldn't common sense dictate this man not be allowed to hang out with minors until it is resolved? Mr. Skelton calls it a cheap ploy; I call it protecting our children and residents. Anyone who owns a house or a couple of cars can post a bond this low, just post your house or sell an automobile to cover what your excess cash can‘t. I would rather see another drug dealer on the corner than Mr. Love until this is resolved. "

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