Judge won't reduce Wallace bond
- A judge on Tuesday declined to reduce the $180,000 bond of a father charged in his infant's death.
- At a Monday hearing, Cory Wallace had asked the judge to reduce his bond to $50,000.
- Wallace's wife told the judge she hoped he could be freed before she gives birth early next month.
- In her ruling, Judge Marianne Vorhees suggested Wallace could pose a danger to that unborn child.
MUNCIE – A Delaware County judge on Tuesday denied a request to reduce the $180,000 bond of a man charged in the February death of his 5-month-old son.
At a Monday hearing, Cory Wallace — who faces five felony charges, including neglect of a dependent resulting in death — had asked that his bond be reduced to $50,000.
Wallace's wife, Sheryl, told Delaware Circuit Court 1 Judge Marianne Vorhees she hoped her husband could return to their Indianapolis home in time for the birth of their second child, due in early September.
In a written order, Vorhees said prosecutors had shown the 23-year-old Wallace "presents a risk to another person's physical safety and to the safety of the community."
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Authorities said Wallace has acknowledged dropping his infant son, Jensen, onto a hardwood floor in the family's Meeker Avenue home on Feb. 10. The father didn't seek medical attention for the critically injured baby, who within hours died of brain injuries.
Wallace then allegedly set fires in the baby's bedroom in a bid to cover up the cause of his child's death.
An autopsy showed Jensen had several injuries, including broken ribs, consistent with abuse. In January, Cory Wallace had been placed on home detention by a Marion County judge after pleading guilty to a neglect charge stemming from similar injuries suffered by another infant he had fathered.
Wallace "was already convicted of injuring a child, and he now stands charged with causing the death of a second child," Vorhees wrote. "This is a third child who would be subjected to possible injury and/or death of (Wallace's) hands."
The judge also noted the arson charge against Wallace.
"When one commits arson, that person could possibly destroy a neighborhood and kill or injure countless people, including the public safety officers who respond to the fire," she wrote.
The judge added that Wallace would face a non-suspendable sentence of 29 years if convicted of all of the local charges, and could receive a prison term of more than 70 years.
She suggested he had "great incentive to flee this court's jurisdiction."
Wallace's trial is set for Jan. 25.
Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. You can also follow him on Twitter @DouglasWalkerSP.