TEMPLE, TX — A former Temple Police officer accused of shooting and killing a man during a traffic stop has been released from jail.
Carmen DeCruz was arrested on Feb. 10th for second-degree manslaughter after the death of Michael Dean on December 2, 2019. He was indicted on the manslaughter charge on March 19.
He resigned from the Temple Police Department on February 19.
Following his indictment, DeCruz had his bond reduced to $80,000. He then posted a commercial bond.
"Bail amounts typically range anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000. In this case, half a million dollars was at least 5 times as much as a reasonable bail amount should have been for an offense like this," said Robert McCabe, DeCruz's attorney.
McCabe says DeCruz's lack of criminal history and inability to make bail led to the bail reduction.
"I mean he's devastated. This is a man who's never been to jail. He's never been in trouble. He's been in law enforcement for more than 30 years. He's in complete shock over this," said DeCruz's attorney Robert McCabe.
