Judge approves new bail hearing after park sexual assault suspect released from jail

AKRON, Ohio — An Akron Municipal Court judge has granted a prosecutor's request for a new bail hearing for the suspect accused of a random sexual assault on a woman at a Summit Metro Park last week.

This development came about a week after Judge Sharon Dennis set bail in Issac Armour's case, allowing him to get out of jail without paying a cent.

Man accused of sexually assaulting woman at Summit Metro Park released from jail on bail

RELATED: Man accused of sexually assaulting woman at Summit Metro Park released from jail on bail

Armour faces two counts of sexual assault, as well as assault and false imprisonment.

The incident occurred Monday morning as the Cuyahoga Falls woman was getting ready to go jogging.

As she was leaving the bathroom, a stranger grabbed her, knocked her to the ground and attacked her.

Three women in their 60s heard the victim screaming for help and intervened, with one of them hitting the suspect on the head with a rock, police said.

The signature bond, also known as a personal bond, frightened and frustrated the alleged 33-year-old victim and surprised some Akron police officers.

In an interview with News 5 last week, the woman said, “I worry about other people. What's stopping him from doing it again?”

A day after the article was published, Akron District Attorney Craig Morgan filed a motion to re-set bail. In it, Morgan wrote, “Since (Armour's arraignment on August 13), the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident has been ongoing and new details have emerged that demonstrate the seriousness of these crimes.”

During a hearing Tuesday morning, Morgan reiterated his position to Judge David Hamilton to push for a new bail.

“We definitely want to make sure that Mr. Armour is not in our community and that is why we made the request,” Morgan said.

Morgan also announced that Armour is currently in a closed mental health facility.

Armour's attorney Andrea Whitaker told the judge that security precautions had been taken.

“He is in a locked facility. Upon his release from this facility, he must be immediately placed on GPS and placed under house arrest,” Whitaker said.

Judge Hamilton granted the prosecutor's request but did not set a date for a new bail hearing because the suspect is in a psychiatric hospital.

“He's not here today, so we can't have a hearing today because his rights would be violated if he wasn't here,” Hamilton said.

The victim, who appeared in court, said she was pleased the hearing was granted and hoped a higher bail would be set on her behalf and on behalf of the community.

“It feels like there should be more thought given to what this could do to the victim – what our decisions could do to the victim,” she said. “I feel like his rights were so comprehensively protected and I just didn't get an answer.”

Michael Gentithes, a law professor at the University of Akron, said signature bonds are common for misdemeanors and lesser crimes, but less common for crimes involving physical violence.

“This allows someone to be released based on their signature alone. It sets an amount that the person must pay if they fail to appear at future court dates,” Gentithes said.

In Armour's case, court documents show that he would have to pay $10,000 if he did not appear in court.