Man accused of leading police on high-speed chase doesn’t show up for court; arrest warrant issued

Hermas Craddock has been out of jail on a non-monetary bond for almost two weeks — following a high-speed chase where police say he rammed two police cars and was driving 80 miles per hour in a 25 mph speed limit zone.

>>> Man accused of leading state police on high-speed chase through Allegheny County

That all changed Monday — when a judge ordered a warrant for his arrest after he didn’t show up for his court date.

“You have to show up for court. This isn’t an optional democracy type of a thing. The court is a dictator, and you better show up,” legal analyst Blaine Jones told Channel 11.

Jones said, in his experience, it’s unusual for a judge to give non-monetary bond to a defendant who is accused of trying to escape police custody.

In Craddock’s case, he was already out on $25,000 for an unrelated gun charge.

“I am surprised that that type of bond was given, just because of the nature of the charges. Additionally, if a defendant has active cases, plus this happens, then generally speaking, the bond is not going to be non-monetary. There’s going to be some type of money you have to put up,” Jones said.

Last week, Channel 11 reported that District Judge Xander Orenstein released Craddock on bond , despite his criminal history and the details of the police chase.

>>> 11 Investigates Exclusive: Judge’s decision under scrutiny for 3rd time in less than a year

The District Attorney’s office challenged that with a bond modification hearing that was scheduled for this Monday morning, but Craddock was a no-show.

“I don’t think it takes a law degree to determine that the client not showing up, absent of a serious reason, is a difficult case to persuade a judge to deny the Commonwealth’s motion for bond revocation,” Blaine said.

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