RICHMOND, Va. (WTVR) An official source confirmed with CBS 6 that next week Lamb of God front man and Richmond local Randy Blythe will appear yet again in court, over bail.
He has appeared in court several times, and his bail was formally denied by the prosecutor on Monday, July 9. At that point Blythe’s case was moved from district to municipal court.
His next court appearance is not until Thursday, July 19. Blythe, age 41, has been detained two weeks since police picked him at the airport in Prague in connection with manslaughter dating back to a May 24, 2010 show at Prague’s Club Abaton.
Randy’s brother, Mark Blythe, told CBS 6 that the charge is “bogus and outrageous and will be dropped immediately.”
Yet, due to extreme differences in legal procedures, by the next time he appears in court, Blythe will have been imprisoned for three weeks, attempting just to sort out bail. He has been jailed at Pankrác Prison since June 28.
This next step involves a panel of judges that meet to review the prosecutors bail challenge; they can approve the bail or annul the bail.
The Prague Monitor reports that district court judge Petr Fassati said that even after that ruling, a Prague attorney could still be allowed to again comment on bail.
A lawyer at Šafra & Partners, told The Prague Post if bail is revoked, Blythe could be kept in prison for up to six months. [Read: U.S. Dept. of State says no comment on jailed Lamb of God singer]
Jonathan Crane, a reporter with the Prague Post, said that a legal expert believes the defense team should have quite a strong case. “Even if Randy was responsible for the alleged attack, the expert said that who is to say that he wasn’t accidentally kicked or trodden on or left without help by fans below the stage,” said Crane.
The growing swell of outraged fans prompted the U.S. Embassy to release on Wednesday a very brief, non-committal statement regarding Blythe: “The U.S. Embassy provides standard consular services to American citizens in need of assistance. We cannot discuss specific cases due to privacy concerns.”
Fans continue to put the public relations machine into motion. Fans are petitioning the White House to get involved in Blythe’s case. The number of signatures more than doubled in just over a 24-hour period as high profile rockers like Ozzy Osbourne, GWAR, Slash and other hit social media channels to promote the petition. [Click here to see the petition].
Lamb of God tour is set to start August 1, in Seattle, Washington.
For full coverage and timeline of Randy Blythe’s imprisonment, click here.
