Louisville activist Quintez Brown, who is accused of shooting at mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg in his campaign headquarters, will remain in custody at the Grayson County Detention Center following a Friday afternoon hearing at the Gene Snyder U.S. Courthouse.
Though Magistrate Judge Colin H. Lindsay ruled that Brown posed no sufficient danger or flight risk to warrant remaining in federal custody, he granted prosecutors’ motion for a stay of release. Brown otherwise would have been placed under home incarceration at his grandmother’s residence, with conditions including that he obtain mental health treatment and avoid online communication and deadly weapons.
Judge Benjamin Beaton will decide whether to reverse Lindsay’s ruling at an undetermined date in the near future. Federal prosecutors currently must file an appeal before 5 p.m. on Monday. If they lose the appeal, Brown will be released to house arrest while awaiting trial.
“It was a gut check, or gut punch, for us,” said defense attorney Patrick J. Renn, who along with Rob Eggert is representing Brown.
“But as to the family to think that he is getting to come home, start getting the treatment that he needs, and be under the care of his family and the people that can really make sure that he’s getting that emotional support that he needs, all of the sudden that was taken away very quickly.”
Prosecutors were not able to convince Lindsay that Brown was a danger to the community or a flight risk, but they brought forth new claims using information obtained from Brown’s internet search history and other traceable information.
Federal attorney Amanda E. Gregory said Brown ordered a rideshare to Greenberg’s residence the day before the shooting, and suggested that the 22-year-old had wanted to kill him there. She also said he searched the web for another city mayoral candidate on Feb. 14, and argued that the candidate could have been another one of Brown’s targets.
Brown is currently facing federal charges of interfering with a federally-protected activity and discharging a firearm in relation to a crime, as well as two state charges connected to the Feb. 14 shooting.
Eggert said in court Brown required mental health support outside of jail and pointed to his previous stint under home incarceration as evidence of an existing support system. However, Lindsay noted that Brown’s mental state did not impact his decision, saying that the Bail Reform Act does not indicate that he should consider a defendant’s well-being.
The Louisville Community Bail Fund paid Brown’s $100,000 bail in February to release him from state custody. Brown was again arrested in early April on the federal charges.
