A Campbell County judge will determine whether Campbell County PVA Daniel Braun, charged with using electronic communication to solicit a minor, will get a bail reduction from $1,000,000 to $100,000.
Braun appeared in court on May 21 with Campbell County Circuit Court Judge Daniel Zalla. Zalla heard a motion for a “Writ of habeas corpus,” a legal remedy that allows anyone detained by the government to challenge their detention. Zalla did not make a ruling at Thursday’s hearing. Another court date will be set to hear his decision.
Braun’s attorney, Brandon Voelker, said that Braun has no prior criminal history, has lived in the county his entire life, and that he has no passport, which indicates he is not a flight risk. He also argued that Braun’s finances, based on his $150,000 income and assets, show he cannot realistically post a $1,000,000 bond. During the hearing, Voelker reviewed Braun’s bank account information and each asset he held valued at over $1,000 to be entered into the record.
He also argued that he has never seen a class C felony in Campbell County (what Braun is being charged with) come with a $1,000,000 bond before. Rather, he has only seen that high of a bond in murder charges.
“You look at those factors, and then you apply financial means, what we have here is Mr. Braun has outlined under his financial means, actually looking at those, I think I’m saying $100,000 is actually even higher than really his financial means, but we agree that would be reasonable,” Voelker said.
The prosecution, Special Counsel to the Attorney General Denise Durbin, argued that Braun’s charges made him a danger to the community and posed a flight risk. Braun was arrested by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office on April 16 because he allegedly procured or promoted the “use of a minor by electronic means,” according to court documents.
According to court documents, Braun allegedly conducted and willingly participated in “online conversation(s) with an undercover detective working in coordination with the Kentucky Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which were illicit and sexually explicit in nature, believing the undercover detective to be a 14-year-old child.”
Due to a conflict of interest arising from Braun’s employment with the Campbell County PVA, the Campbell County Attorney’s Office reached out to the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office to oversee the case.
A class C felony carries a five- to 10-year sentence. Durbin asked Braun during the hearing whether he was aware that he could face additional charges and serve additional time in prison, to which he said yes.
Durbin also asked Braun if he was aware that the government has the authority to remove him from his position as PVA, to which he said yes. During her questioning, she also asked Braun how old his son was, to which he replied 14.
“The defendant acknowledged that he could see other charges points toward his mindset of the propensity for flight, which is a factor for this court to consider,” Durbin said. “If the court finds that he is a flight risk or a danger, based on what we see right now, the severity of five to 10 for someone who has not presumably been in trouble before. I think that’s significant.”
Braun first appeared in court on Friday, April 17, where Campbell County District Court Judge Erin Sizemore set his $1,000,000 bond. He was then denied a bail reduction by Sizemore at an April 22 bond motion, when Voelker requested Braun’s bail be lowered from $1,000,000 to $100,000.
Should Zalla find that Braun is being unlawfully detained due to his high bond, he can lower it. If it is lowered, Voelker said Braun was willing to live with his 87-year-old father, who does not have internet access at home. Both the prosecution and defense agreed to other previously suggested perimeters by the district court, such as:
- Be on home incarceration.
- Having no devices with internet access.
- No contact with minors.
- Make all scheduled court dates and stay in contact with his attorney.
