$20,000 for a Ruined Life: The Plymouth County Fire-Sale on Justice

Step right up and behold the absolute circus that is the Massachusetts judicial system.
Our latest candidate for moral bankruptcy: Jillian Timmons.

Let’s recap the highlights, shall we? Try not to choke on the absurdity.
Back in July, this 34-year-old from Abington strolls into South Shore Hospital holding her two-month-old infant. Two months old. The kid hasn’t even figured out how hands work yet, but medical evaluations reveal she’s already rocking severe brain bleeds from blunt force trauma. Trauma that was already days old when she brought her in. The injuries are so devastating that doctors warn if this baby survives, she’ll likely face permanent neurological damage—never walking, speaking, feeding herself, or living an independent life.

Naturally, the state police dive in, execute search warrants, seize her electronics, and check her personal journal. A Plymouth County grand jury takes one look at this nightmare, returns a felony indictment for Assault and Battery on a Child Causing Serious Bodily Injury, and throws in Reckless Endangerment for good measure.
The initial court sets bail at $100,000. Still cheap for allegedly destroying an infant’s entire existence, but at least it felt like a real number.

And then comes the court’s grand punchline: the case gets bound over to Superior Court, and the judge slashes her bail to $20,000.
Twenty. Thousand. Dollars.
That’s less than the sticker price on a used Toyota Civic. That’s a ten-percent-down fire sale to walk out the front door after allegedly beating a two-month-old baby into permanent brain damage. What a bargain!
Imagine the sheer judicial arrogance it takes to look at medical reports detailing a baby’s shattered future, look at felony grand jury indictments, and decide: “You know what? $100k is a bit steep. Let’s make it twenty grand.”
If $20k is all it costs to buy freedom while awaiting trial for allegedly crippling an infant, the system isn’t just broken—it’s running a clearance rack.