Cain Velasquez Granted Bail During Pre-Trial Hearing
Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has been granted bail amidst his attempted murder case. At a pre-trial hearing on Nov. 8, 2022, Santa Clara County Judge Arthur Bocanegra passed a motion filed by Velasquez’s attorney, Mark Geragos, which allowed Velasquez bail.
Velasquez was originally arrested after an alleged incident that occurred on Feb. 28. In this incident, he got into a high-speed chase and fired several shots at a vehicle. In the vehicle was Harry Goularte. Goularte allegedly sexually abused Velasquez’s son at a daycare that was run by Patricia Goularte, Harry’s mother. In this alleged incident, Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, was wounded by a bullet and suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Despite allowing bail, Bocanegra maintained that Velasquez should be charged with premeditated attempted murder. Although, he did voice that he was convinced Velasquez was not a threat to the community.
“Mr. Velasquez, I would not release you if I was not convinced that finally a release at this time, eight months later, that you would be a danger to Harry Goularte, primarily, Patricia Goularte or Paul Bender or the public,” Judge Bocanegra said.
“But if you are as devoted as a husband and father, I have to believe and I’m confident he will not jeopardize anything that would take away from your son, your daughter or your family. I hope you don’t prove me wrong.”
Velasquez responded by saying, “I won’t, your honor.”
Velasquez’s bail was set at one million dollars. Along with paying bail, Velasquez must compile with a litany of court orders. This is led by home detention with GPS monitoring. Velasquez also must go through treatment for CTE and brain injuries along with counseling for parents of children that have suffered sexual abuse. Velasquez’s home will have a search and seizure performed and he will be unable to have any weapons in his home. Lastly, Velasquez must remain more than 300 yards from Goularte, Bender, and Patricia Goularte.
During Velasquez’s case, he has received a plethora of support from the MMA community. This includes support from UFC President Dana White, UFC champions Daniel Cormier and Khabib Nurmagomedov, who were Velasquez’s teammates, and many more.
