
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 23, 1993                   TAG: 9304230111
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DOUGLAS PARDUE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

KILLINGS PROMPT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SAFEGUARDS

Three weeks after James Sol Fox went on a rampage through a small house in Clintwood, killing his girlfriend, his daughter, his girlfriend's father and himself, Dickenson County authorities have decided they need to take a harder look at domestic violence.

From now on, if a firearm is involved, the accused is likely to be held without bail for one to four days, said Dickenson County Commonwealth's Attorney Don Askins.

Askins said no bail is not a firm rule. But magistrates will "look seriously at denying bail" in domestic violence cases involving firearms, he said.

If a magistrate denies bail, the accused then would have to appear before a higher-court judge for a bond hearing. That could mean just a matter of hours or of several days, especially if the alleged crime occurs on a weekend.

Last week, relatives of those killed by Fox and advocates for victims said the killings might not have happened if the legal system showed more concern over domestic violence.

Legal authorities concede that it sometimes is difficult to treat domestic violence accusations seriously because victims often drop charges a day or so later.

Askins said he called a meeting earlier this week to discuss the problem with magistrates, sheriff's investigators and court services officers. He said it was generally agreed that the accusation should be handled more seriously if a firearm is involved and that bail should be harder to post.

Kyle McClanahan, chief magistrate for Dickenson and several nearby counties, said magistrates still have to be aware that an accusation is just that, and that the accused has a right to reasonable bail.

He called the Sol Fox case "one in 10,000." He had said earlier that it was obvious that, with the benefit of hindsight, Fox should not have been released. Such decisions are always judgment calls, McClanahan said.

Carolyn Mullins, the magistrate who released Fox, has not returned telephone calls.

Fox, 33, was released on personal recognizance April 3 shortly after his girlfriend, Jutannia Estep, 28, took out warrants accusing him of bursting into her house with a shotgun, beating her and threating to kill her.

Two days later, Fox carried out his threat. He killed his girlfriend; their 1-year-old daughter, Angela Bell Estep; and his girlfriend's father, Edgar Dale Estep, 54. He also wounded his girlfriend's mother and then committed suicide.

Lilton Estep, who lost his sister, father and niece, said Thursday that Dickenson County and the state as a whole need to do more to protect victims of domestic violence.

"I think it shows good intentions," he said of the county's new effort to restrict bail. "But I don't see how it's going to help people in other communities."

by CNB