NEW ORLEANS — A criminal defendant, who fled two court appearances in the past month after he failed two separate drug tests, is back in custody and booked with a new charge: cutting off his electronic ankle bracelet.
The rarely-used misdemeanor – tampering with electronic monitoring equipment – was added to the list of charges against 26-year-old Craig Howard. Following his capture Monday by NOPD officer and U.S. Marshals, Howard also was booked on a new charge of criminal damage to property.
Howard was originally facing a gun charge for allegedly firing a bullet into a neighbor’s apartment in February. He was released after posting a $10,000 bond with the condition of wearing an electronic ankle monitor.
Court records show that Howard was adhering to his bail conditions until he appeared before Judge Ben Willard on July 19. Howard was ordered by Willard to take a drug test, which he did, but then failed to return to the courtroom. The drug screening later came up positive for opiates and Ecstasy, court records show.
Despite fleeing, Howard could have been easily captured.
The monitoring company – Assured Supervision Accountability Program, or ASAP – tracked Howard in real time to the Home Depot on Earhart Boulevard, where he grabbed a bolt cutter from the shelf and removed the device. ASAP alerted Criminal Court Judge Ben Willard to Howard’s escape, but Willard declined to issue an arrest warrant, leaving ASAP agents and police powerless to act.
Willard noted that the ankle monitor had been ordered previously by a magistrate commissioner before the case was allotted to him. Nevertheless, Willard has drawn criticism for not acting more quickly to prevent Howard from successfully cutting off the bracelet and disappearing.
“This is frustrating in that this is not a failure of the electronic monitor. It's a failure of the judge,” said Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, a non-profit criminal justice watchdog group. “This is something that was totally preventable.”
Howard returned to Willard's court on his own on July 27, but suffered no consequences. He was ordered to return to court Aug. 8, which he did, but he failed another drug test, court records show.
And again, he fled the courthouse.
Police arrested Howard Monday pursuant to a bench warrant issued by Willard. Following WWL-TV’s report on Howard’s multiple escapes, the Orleans District Attorney’s office filed a motion to revoke bail.
Howard is being held at the Orleans Justice Center. A new court date has not yet been scheduled.
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