RICHMOND, Va. -- A family is left heartbroken after one of the men charged with killing their 23-year-old son was released on a secured bond.
"My son was shot, murdered in his kitchen," Alex Leonard's mother said tearfully.
At just 23 years old, life was just getting started for Alex Leonard from Chesterfield County. He was living in Richmond off of Idlewood Avenue with a friend until a blustery spring night turned bloody inside his home.
Crime Insider sources say that both Keion Taylor and accomplice Tyeqwon Friend pulled out guns and tried robbing Leonard's roommate of a large bag of marijuana.
"It was a gunfight that night and he had his gun out with all intentions but I guess that's not bad enough," Alex's father said.
After the murder, weeks passed without an answer. The U.S. Marshal Fugitive Task Force put out a bulletin for Keion Taylor who was considered to be armed and dangerous.
Taylor would eventually turn himself in to authorities but his stay behind bars for the robbery and murder of Leonard would end up being short.
Keion, who is now 21, was remanded to the custody of his mother. He was most recently charged with murder and robbery.
"He's at home enjoying everyday life like nothing has ever happened, you know. His mom is washing his clothes, making him a nice bed. My son is on my mantle in an urn," Alex's father said.
A Richmond judge released Taylor on a secured bond and ankle monitor while he awaits the capture of co-conspirator Tyeqwon Friend and an impending trial.
Friend is still at large. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the police.
"Obviously, with this charge, there's a pretty good argument that he can be a danger to the community as far as flight goes. The GPS monitor helps with that. Normally on murder, you don't get a bond but there are circumstances when there's assurance to the court," CBS6 legal expert Todd Stone said.
It is a court that Leonard's mother said that she has no confidence in, adding that the justice system has victimized her family again.
"I think this whole thing is a mess. I don't think the judge paid attention to the case or looked at the boy's rap sheet. I feel it's an injustice to Alex, his family and law enforcement who worked hard to get him behind bars the first time," Alex's mother said.
Stone said that the Leonard family's next move should be a call to the Commonwealth Attorney.
"A Commonwealth's Attorney can appeal a bond decision from the lower court. So if there's a bond that the prosecutor thinks isn't justified, they can appeal that to the circuit court and then you'll get another judge to take a look at it," Stone said.
Crime Insider sources say that another female accomplice was also released on an ankle monitor.
