HALL COUNTY, Ga. — Miguel Angel Lopez is now a fugitive after he missed the start of his trial on Monday. At least one of his victims says he should never have been allowed out on bond in the first place.
Mr. Lopez is accused of raping three women, sexual battery, and child molestation. He was arrested in 2022, and the trial was set to begin on October 28.
“It was supposed to represent taking that step into finally being able to move on with my life,” Erica Flores said.
Flores is one of Mr. Lopez’s alleged victims. She says the system has failed her over the past two years since the arrest.
“It’s been a lot of promises that have not been kept,” Flores said.
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Despite being arrested for crimes that would put him behind bars for decades, Mr. Lopez was let out of jail on a $20,000 bond. The ruling was made over the objections of the Hall County District Attorney at the time.
“It felt like a slap on the wrist. They told me they were going to fight to never get bail. It was not supposed to be an option, but then he did get bail,” Flores said.
Months later, the judge would grant a motion to remove Mr. Lopez’s ankle monitor.
Despite the unfavorable rulings, Mr. Lopez was set to begin his trial on Monday, but he never showed up.
“I was shocked. I did not know what to say. I did not know what to do,” Flores said “I was angry. I just wanted to know who I could blame for the fact that I was in so much pain.”
Chris Timmons is a former prosecutor, he says that even though the Hall County’s DA opposed setting bail or removing the monitor, it is the judge who has the final word.
“It is a tragic situation made worse by somebody who had the benefit of the doubt given to them, but they betrayed that trust,” Timmons said. “It’s the system failing, but the system is set up to take chances on people. We want to presume people are innocent. We want to presume they are going to show up even when there are serious charges against them, but unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen.”
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Timmons says Mr. Lopez will likely be a priority target to the US Marshals because of the crimes he is accused of. However, the trial will be put on hold until Mr. Lopez is found.
“As a prosecutor, you want to get justice for the victims, and you can’t get that justice if the person doesn’t show up for trial,” Timmons said.
Channel 2 Action News reached out to Mr. Lopez’s lawyer, Arturo Corso, about why his client missed court. In an email, Mr. Corso said:
“If I had to guess, it’s because he felt he couldn’t get a fair trial. The criminal legal system has some major flaws: decisions made by jurors who don’t want to be there and don’t understand the law, complicated legal principles that are difficult to apply, evidence based on witnesses who are either unreliable or even have a motive to lie, and prosecutors with a win at all costs approach to handling their caseloads. In this case, the difference between going home and spending life in prison was just a flip of a coin. There is a reason why our society worries about underage sex -- emotional immaturity. Young men take note when you approach sexual relationships like a game for the highest “body count”... you may encounter Shakespeare’s “woman scorned” and find yourself counting the days until your jury trial from a jail cell.”
For Flores, she says she wants closure. She says she has forgiven Lopez, but still wants justice to be served.
“Forgiveness and justice are two different things. They go hand and hand, but I have forgiven him for what he did, but I want there to be justice,” Flores said. “If he had any part of him that felt sorry, he would stop running, and he would just accept that there is freedom in accepting the consequences.”
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