From here:
Defense attorney Barry Dynice said Tavares had no history of failing to show up for court, had a sister in the area with whom he could live and had volunteered for electronic monitoring.The defense attorney also told the judge that Tavares had a fiancée in Washington State and that the attorney had corresponded with her.
The judge declined to order a monitoring system, saying she was presented with no evidence he was a flight risk. She ordered him freed on the condition that he call probation officers three times a week, live with his sister and work.
“It is the court’s view that Mr. Tavares has wrapped his sentence on the underlying offense,” Tuttman said, according to a transcript of the hearing. “He doesn’t have a history of any defaults on his record. And there is no indication before the court based on the representations of counsel and the record before me that he is a risk of flight, other than the nature and circumstances of the charges,”
Perhaps the real story is being missed here. The Washington State Patrol was alerted to the issue, apparently had his residence under surveillance, and yet seem to have failed to notify the local law enforcement.
There may be some issues with the judge, but do not forget that there was more than one failure within the system(s) that could have perhaps prevented another death.