Jacoby Tatum wins partial release yesterday in Dallas 283rd District Court. Retired Judge Grace Lewis ruled Tatum could have leg monitoring restrictions lowered. Lewis filled in for vacationing Judge Lela Mays.
Tatum will maintain leg monitor restrictions, but will have ability to work. He will also have opportunity to attend church services. His house arrest is otherwise in place.
Jacoby Tatum Wins Another Round Over Public Safety
Tatum was one of four individuals who went on a crime spree on November 16, 2021. The criminal actions ended with the murder of Ali Elbanna in the Costco parking lot in Dallas on Park Lane.
Tatum is out on bond after Judge Mays dropped his bond in April 2022. Tatum’s criminal charges relate to the armed robbery of two teenagers at South Oak Cliff. They also attempted armed robbery of a woman at NorthPark Mall. They then demanded property from Ali Elibanna before murdering him on November 16.
The family released a statement after the ruling.
“Dallas County will become less safe today after Judge Lela Mays decided to relax house arrest restrictions for a criminal facing aggravated robbery charges. Jacoby Tatum was involved in the murder of our father and three other armed robbery cases, but he will now be allowed to go to work and church alongside other Dallas residents. We are deeply dismayed and disturbed by this decision. We truly believe this individual should be behind bars right now given his role in multiple violent crimes in Dallas that happened less than a year ago and ended in the murder of our father. Public safety should be the primary concern, and we are truly worried for Dallas residents who could face what we had to face because of the release granted by the judge today.”
The decision is another in a long line of pro-criminal choices Dallas is making.
Earlier this year Judge Chika Aniyam chose to lower the bond of Julio Guerrero despite multiple acts of violence.
City of Dallas staff have also backed down from responding to homeless crisis after being confronted by antifa groups. These were later called out by activist Andy Ngô, but Dallas appears to be on a Crime Pays bandwagon.