Judge reveals why he released Julian Wood’s killer back on the streets just days before she stabbed toddler in parking lot

An Ohio judge has defended his decision to release the woman accused of killing three-year-old Julian Wood back onto the streets just days before the fatal stabbing, despite a referral for a mental health evaluation.

Recordings obtained by Fox 8 shows a Rocky River Municipal Court magistrate referred Bionca Ellis, 32, for a mental health evaluation after she appeared unresponsive during a hearing following her arrest for parole violation on May 29.

But Judge Brian Hagan said there was no one available at the organization handling the mental health evaluations, and he thought it would be unfair for Ellis to spend days in jail on a minor charge.

“There were no red flags shooting out of that pole,” Hagan said, explaining that there were “no signs of mental distress, no signs of prior, violent acts.”

He wouldn’t have done anything differently, he said, even now — knowing Ellis is charged with aggravated murder for the toddler’s death.

Judge Brian Hagan released 32-year-old Bionca Ellis just days before she allegedly killed a three-year-old boy and injured his mother

A magistrate requested that Ellis be held for a mental health evaluation

“I have confidence in the way the court handled the case,” he told Fox 8.

“We did it according to the letter of the law, there was nothing that could cause alarm.”

But it has since been revealed that Ellis had a criminal record dating back several months in three different states – and she once even confessed to police that she had killed someone and wanted to kill again.

In January, Ellis was arrested in Bakersfield, California on three counts of battery on person for allegedly attacking three people, Fox 8 reported.

The following month, she told police in Cleveland that she had killed a woman in California and that she wanted to kill again.

Local police then took Ellis to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, as Bakersfield police determined her confession was not credible because it was inconsistent with unsolved cases.

Ellis was arrested on May 29 when police discovered a warrant for her arrest

In March, Ellis was arrested in Florida after booking a hotel room in Kissimmee but not having the money to pay for it.

She spent a month in jail for trespassing.

Then, on May 29, just four days before she allegedly followed Julian and his mother out of the Giant Eagle supermarket in North Olmstead, Ohio and cut the young boy on the face and neck, police found her while she was walking to the supermarket walked. bus stop in a wheelchair and discovered there was a warrant out for her arrest.

She had been charged last May with shoplifting $69 worth of merchandise from a Walmart and pleaded guilty to the lesser crime of unauthorized use of property.

Ellis escaped with six months probation, but failed to complete the required theft education program and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

When she was taken into custody, police body camera footage showed her almost dancing as she excitedly shouted, “I’m getting a free ride!”

Ellis is accused of killing three-year-old Julian Wood just three days after she was released

However, when she appeared in court to face the parole violation, Magistrate Gregory Sponseller appeared concerned about her mental state.

He could be heard in court during the hearing questioning whether Ellis was paying attention or if she was falling asleep, repeatedly asking the suspect if she could hear him until he decided she needed a mental health evaluation.

“Let’s hold her for an evaluation by Recovery Resources,” he ordered.

“I’m not sure she fully understands the simple requirements the court has placed on her,” he noted.

Ellis’ mother, Yolanda Eggleton, now says she believes both the justice system and mental health system failed her daughter.

She said Ellis had suffered from mental health problems for years, and suggested she may have been “hallucinating” when she allegedly killed Wood and stabbed his mother, Margot, on June 2.

“Bionca took several medications that didn’t help her,” Eggleton told Fox8. ‘The hallucinations and the voices got the best of her.’

She added that she believes police should have done more to monitor Ellis’ mental state after her alleged confession and proclamation that she wanted to kill again.

“This won’t be the last time,” Eggleton warned.

“And it’s so sad and so tragic that a baby had to lose his life — an innocent baby.”

Eggleton then offered her condolences to the Wood family for the cuts and said she was shocked to hear the news.

“When I found out I was devastated, I’m devastated,” she said. “No child should ever lose their life.

“She was with my grandchildren,” Eggleton added. “It could be one of my grandchildren.”

Police say Ellis followed Julian and his mother Margot out of the Giant Eagle supermarket while brandishing a stolen knife

Police say Ellis first encountered Julian and his mother, Margot, 37, as they left the Giant Eagle supermarket and followed them outside to their car – brandishing a knife she had allegedly stolen from a nearby Volunteers of America Thrift Store.

She then allegedly stabbed the toddler in the face and back while he was in the shopping cart, then cut up his mother as she tried to get her child to safety. according to Cleveland19.

Ellis was found just a few minutes later walking down a nearby side street, still carrying a bloody knife, police said.

She had no previous connection to the Wood family, authorities said, calling the attack “completely a random act of violence.”

Ellis now faces charges including murder, aggravated murder, attempted murder, assault, child endangerment, tampering with evidence and felony theft.

Ellis’ lawyer suggested in court that she has “notable mental health issues.”

When she faced these charges in court on Monday, her lawyer suggested she has “notable mental health issues.”

She noted that the suspect initially appeared via video feed with her head down and refused to answer the judge’s questions about whether or not she had read the indictment.

Only after a judge ordered an attorney from the public defender’s office to go to the Cuyahoga County Jail and read the charges to Ellis did the suspect appear in court and plead not guilty to the charges.

She was then seen smiling and almost laughing as the judge read out the charges against her, and even turned directly to the camera and grinned.

The judge then set Ellis’ bond at $5 million and ordered the suspect to return to court next Monday.