A South Carolina man accused of breaching the gate at the FBI Atlanta offices in April was granted bond in federal court Friday with conditions that he be released to a local halfway house as soon as possible.
Ervin Lee Bolling, 48, has been detained by federal law enforcement for about six weeks since his arrest April 1. He was granted a signature bond that required no payment by U.S. Magistrate Judge Catherine M. Salinas, who said she wanted to get Bolling moved out of federal detention after he was held for more than a month between hearings.
Escorted into the courtroom by U.S. Marshals, Bolling wore a neon orange sweatsuit and appeared alert and attentive. He told Salinas he was doing well when she asked at the start of the hearing, and he spoke clearly and concisely when the judge addressed him.
Bolling was arrested after he allegedly crashed his orange Buick Encore into the “final denial barrier” just inside the gate at FBI Atlanta’s facility on Flowers Road in Chamblee, according to his federal arrest warrant. He is accused of exiting his car and following an FBI agent toward the building, then refusing to comply when he was taken into custody by agents. He is charged with one federal count of destruction of government property with damages exceeding $1,000, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
If Bolling is found guilty, he will be liable for fixing the wedge barrier, which could cost up to $35,000 to repair or up to $70,000 for a replacement, according to previous testimony.
At issue Friday was the balance of Bolling’s right to a fair and speedy trial weighed against his mental health travails, living situation and public safety. At his previous hearing, federal prosecutor Katherine Terry said Bolling’s housing status was “in flux,” and Salinas expressed concern about where Bolling would live and how he would receive psychiatric care if he were released.
After Bolling’s nieces attended his initial hearing in April, no family was present at Friday’s proceedings. Bolling is married but estranged from his wife, and though his appointed attorney, Takiya Wheeler, said he had family support in South Carolina, she did not argue for him to be released into their care.
Wheeler described how bureaucratic entanglements presented challenges with finding her client a place to live and receive treatment. Bolling is a veteran of the U.S. Navy and eligible to take advantage of a wide range of Veterans Affairs resources, but they can’t be accessed while he’s in federal custody, Wheeler said.
According to Wheeler, the long-term plan for Bolling is to gain admission to the VA’s residential rehabilitation treatment program, known in the military as the DOM.
The program provides housing, around-the-clock medical care and mental health support, but veterans can’t access it directly from jail. Bolling would also need to prove that he’s been taking his medication for at least 30 days, among other requirements, Wheeler said.
She asked for Bolling to be granted bond and released to Dismas House, a non-profit, Catholic halfway house where he could continue to receive psychiatric care while working to gain entry to the DOM. Terry asked that Bolling’s movements be restricted to the campus of Dismas House while he is housed there.
Salinas agreed, placing conditions on Bolling’s bond that he remain at Dismas House except for medical care and court appearances. He is ordered not to leave the Northern District of Georgia for any reason and is barred from possessing guns.
Bolling was also ordered to abstain from alcohol and drugs other than those prescribed to him. A federal probation officer at Friday’s hearing noted that Bolling previously admitted to using methamphetamines. His bond also requires him to submit to substance abuse counseling and receive psychiatric treatment.
Before Bolling could be released, Salinas asked that Wheeler and her team provide the medical paperwork required by Dismas House, which includes the results of a standard physical and a negative tuberculosis test. Salinas told Bolling he would be introduced to a pretrial officer after the hearing who would help with the paperwork to secure his release. The judge assured Bolling he wouldn’t “unnecessarily languish” in federal detention and that he would be moved to Dismas House in a matter of days.
No further hearings are required to secure Bolling’s transfer, Salinas said, though his attorneys are required to keep working on a longer-term residential solution.
“This is progress,” Salinas said.
