Listening to a Zoom hearing from nearly 500 miles away, Eunbii Kim said she felt helpless when a judge in Fulton County ruled the woman accused of killing her father would be granted bond.
Janet Williams, who a previous judge had ruled was a “danger” to the community and posed a “significant risk of fleeing,” had worked as a security guard in Buckhead, where Atlanta police said she stabbed 90-year-old Chun-ki Kim more than 50 times inside his apartment in September.
The brutal killing led residents at the senior complex to lock their doors at night and devastated Eunbii and her family.
Then, on June 4, she said she watched in horror from her home in Tampa, Florida, with her sister as Judge Jerry Baxter made his decision inside the Atlanta courtroom.
She was on mute, but it didn’t matter. She was speechless.
“The bail was shocking, and we are extremely disturbed,” Eunbii told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Tuesday. “Due to the amount of the probable cause that led to the defendant’s arrest, and in consideration that the crime was committed by planning, we are also fearful and concerned for the well-being of certain citizens in the area.”
Williams, who is indigent according to her attorneys, was granted and posted a $100,000 bond, court documents show.
Credit: Eunbii Kim
Credit: Eunbii Kim
Kim, a retired shoe repairman who immigrated from Korea in the 1980s, was found dead Sept. 25 by his caregiver inside his fifth-floor apartment in the Marian Road Highrise, a complex that serves senior adults and those with disabilities. Kim’s wallet and Atlanta Braves cap were the only things missing from his apartment, Williams’ arrest warrant said. Authorities have not publicly discussed a motive but have told residents they believe Williams acted alone.
Williams had been hired to protect the complex, whose residents described her as a friendly face. But police said surveillance footage showed her going to the fifth floor several times that day before the victim’s body was found. At one point, she had a limp, and her clothing appeared torn and stained, according to the warrant.
Credit: David Aaro / David.Aaro@ajc.com
Credit: David Aaro / David.Aaro@ajc.com
She later passed out flyers to residents to inform them about the killing and talked to Kim’s grieving family in the lobby to tell them how great their father was and that she was sorry for their loss, according to police and Eunbii. Investigators at the crime scene noted Williams was watching them “closely, even asking questions of the police,” the warrant stated. She was arrested Oct. 10, about a week after police searched her DeKalb County residence.
Police also said Williams didn’t seek medical attention for a serious wound to her leg, which she told officers she hurt on a garage door. She tried killing herself Nov. 6 inside the jail by jumping off a balcony, the Fulton sheriff’s office confirmed.
Williams, who pleaded guilty to theft and battery charges in the 1990s, was originally denied bond in November by Judge Ural Glanville. During that hearing, Glanville ruled that Williams posed a “significant risk” of fleeing, committing another felony, intimidating witnesses and was a “threat or danger to any person, the community, or to any property in the community.”
She was also denied bond in April by Judge Belinda Edwards, Eunbii said. Edwards was listed as the assigned judge for the case, but Eunbii said Baxter filled in during the third bond hearing last month.
“We feel that a homicide case of this severity should not have had the court proceeding presided (over) by a substitute judge and rather should have been rescheduled,” Eunbii said.
Court records show the trial is scheduled to start Monday, with Edwards listed as the presiding judge. However, Eunbii said a victim advocate told her it would be delayed.
During the latest hearing, Williams’ defense team argued there was a lack of evidence, that she wasn’t a flight risk and that she didn’t have much money. Prosecutors argued about the severity of the crime, strong probable cause and evidence, and how she had already been denied bond twice.
Eunbii said Baxter asked prosecutors about their caseload before expressing worries that the case wouldn’t get to trial for a while. Prosecutors then responded that both sides were waiting on DNA evidence.
“It sounded like he already had his mind made up,” Eunbii said. “Baxter granted the bond despite that two previous judges denied it.”
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
In a statement, DA’s office spokesperson Jeff DiSantis said he confirmed with the prosecution team that “our office strongly opposed bond, but the judge decided to grant it over our objection.”
Baxter has served on the bench for more than 30 years. During that time, he presided over the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating case, which led to the 2015 convictions of nearly a dozen administrators and teachers. At the time, it was the longest criminal trial in Georgia history.
According to the bond order, Williams has to notify the court of an address change, cannot have contact with the victim’s family and the Buckhead complex, must wear an ankle monitor and is barred from working at any residential living or assisted living facility.
Eunbii said she remains shocked by the decision and is just asking for justice during the trial.
“I am hoping she gets what she deserves, nothing more,” she said.
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